


Love Is All You Need

by alliecat23784



Series: Broken [4]
Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Blow Jobs, Death (but not of a major character), Family Fluff, Fluff, Kid Fic, Light Angst, M/M, Minor Anxiety, Rimming, Smut, hopefully you don't overdose, lots and lots of fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-05
Updated: 2016-10-05
Packaged: 2018-06-09 21:17:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 137,185
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6923689
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alliecat23784/pseuds/alliecat23784
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Part Four of the Broken Series.</p><p>Niall and Harry meet Niall's son for the first time.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Part One

**Author's Note:**

> Hello Again!
> 
> This...is really long. I was torn because I didn't intend for it to be long. I didn't want everyone to get bored with it and not want to read it when they saw it was so long. However, at the end of the last part, Niall and Harry discovered Niall had a son and I didn't want that to be rushed in this part. I didn't want them to meet, love each other, and live happily ever after in under ten thousand words. I wanted it to be at least somewhat realistic, even if it is fiction.
> 
> So I'm left hoping that the people who have enjoyed this series so far, enjoy this part as well. I really wanted to show Niall and Harry as a family with Rory and the ups and downs of suddenly becoming parents to a teenager. Hopefully I did that. At least somewhat. 
> 
> I've decided to divide it up into two chapters since it's so long. It might make it a bit easier to read. The first part will have Niall and Harry meeting Rory and getting to know him. It's basically Narry navigating through their first year of marriage while being thrown this huge curveball of all of a sudden having a teenager in their life. 
> 
> The Second part will deal with Rory losing his Mum and how they deal with it as a family, how they deal with Rory moving in with them full time and then of course how they all handle things when Narry start having babies!
> 
> All together it could end up being 100 000 words so if you feel it's too long and you don't want to read it, I understand. For those of you who do choose to read it, I just ask that you don't bash me in the comments for it being so long because I have warned everybody. So, be kind. Please!
> 
> I want to say there's a little bit of Football talk in this part. While I do enjoy watching Football on the television or at a stadium, I'm not an expert on how the EPL works. Far from it. I have no idea if there is scouting in Football like in other sports, or how any of that is done so I simply made it all up for this story. If any of it happens to be correct, I assure you it's a complete fluke LOL
> 
> Also, without spoiling the story, I will just say there are some medical situations that come up and I want to stress that, again, I know nothing about anything medical, just what I see on TV and what I can read on Wikipedia so I'm sure some of it will be wrong but I hope you can look past it and enjoy the story anyway. 
> 
> I suck at editing. I try my best but sometimes when you look over something so many times, it all becomes a blur and you can't see what's right in front of you. So I apologize for any mistakes and I hope they don't ruin the story for you.
> 
> The title is basically just finishing the line of the Beatles song that I used for the last part "All You Need Is Love" 
> 
> I think that's everything. I really hope you all enjoy and please let me know what you think!

At ten minutes to twelve on Saturday morning, Niall set out on foot to walk the ten minutes to the park in Chelsea where he was meeting his son for the first time. He offered to go wherever Kaetlyn wanted but she suggested Chelsea since it's where Niall and Harry lived. She figured it would be best to get Rory used to the area as soon as possible since he would be living there sometime in the near future.

Harry wasn't with him. He wanted him to be and he knew Harry wanted to be but it was Harry who suggested it might be better if Niall got to know Rory on his own first. He didn't want him to get overwhelmed by everything and thought easing him in would be a good start. Also, Harry thought it a good idea Rory know who Niall is married to so he can get used to it before they meet. Even if Rory has never heard of Harry, it's still a big adjustment to be involved in the life of a celebrity and having to deal with that and a new father all at the same time might be too overwhelming for the fifteen year old.

Niall agreed and was thankful Harry even thought of all that. Niall was so full of nerves he didn't even know if he was thinking of half the things he should be when it comes to his son. He said as much to Harry before he left the house and Harry simply kissed him, long and slow and deep until Niall was pliant against him.

Now, as he got closer and closer to the park, he took slow deep breaths and reminded himself that Kaetlyn said Rory wanted to meet him and even though he was nervous, he was excited as well. So Niall had nothing to worry about. He just needed to relax and be himself and everything would be fine.

He walked through the entrance to the park at twelve exactly and walked briskly toward the centre where he suggested they meet. It was a very large park but there were a lot of benches near the centre and there were goals set up for anyone wanting to have a friendly football match. Of course the area wasn't as large as a regular football pitch but that wasn't needed since these weren't serious matches. Now that he lives in Chelsea, he meets his own mates there on Sunday to play footie so he figured it would be as good a place as any if Rory wanted to kick the ball around a bit.

He spotted Kaetlyn immediately. She was sitting alone on a bench with a warm, grey coat pulled tight around her and a red scarf to keep her neck warm. It was only the beginning of October but it was England and definitely a bit on the chilly side. Rory wasn't with her and he panicked for a moment, thinking maybe the boy had changed his mind. His heart rate started to climb for a moment, until he heard a shout in the distance and looked over to see a group of boys playing footie. His eyes immediately found Rory as he sprinted with the ball and Niall couldn't help but stop and stare for a moment, admiring the fluid motions of his son on the pitch. He was quick, he was agile, and he was very, very good. Niall could tell right away, his eyes following Rory down the pitch as his feet did all sorts of tricks with the ball. The other boys tried to get the ball from him but he was too quick and before they knew it, the ball was flying past the goalkeeper sending the other boys on his team into a frenzy.

“Good isn't he?” Niall jumped a bit at the voice. He hadn't realized Kaetlyn had stood up and walked over to him.

“Y-yeah,” Niall cleared his throat “Yeah. He's brilliant. Where'd he learn to play like that?”

“It's always come naturally to him,” Kaetlyn shrugged “Not to say he doesn't work hard because he does. He loves football more than anything and isn't afraid of hard work if it means he might get to play professionally some day. He's a smart boy. He knows he won't get anywhere just because he has the talent. He knows it takes a lot of hard work and dedication. Talent isn't any good if you don't know how to cultivate it. If you don't have discipline and a good work ethic. He likes to run. He'll run most mornings before school. I didn't like him getting up so early to do that but he says he loves it and what good are his skills on the pitch if he can't even run for five minutes without running out of breath? He's right of course. He's just so smart, so self aware. I'm so proud of him.”

“Does getting up that early and running before school exhaust him?” Niall asks, a frown appearing on his face.

“I was worried about that but, no, it doesn't really. He loves doing it, his grades in school haven't suffered, I haven't gotten any calls about him falling asleep in class and his health is fine. He's perfectly healthy. I would have put a stop to it if it affected him negatively in any way. So far, it hasn't. He still plays on the school team, has practice three times a week, matches on the weekends sometimes and still spends time with his friends just being a kid. He's a big ball of energy. Loves life, loves laughing, he's just a real joy. I couldn't be any more proud.”

“He sounds incredible. It'll be an honour to get to know him.” Niall spoke softly, his voice barely audible over the sound of the wind pushing leaves around on the ground.

“We got here early. He's a bit nervous so I brought him early to kick the ball around and work out some of those nerves. He had a bunch of kids together within five minutes and they've been playing for the past twenty minutes.”

“He doesn't know those boys?” Niall asks incredulously, his eyebrows raised.

“Nope,” Kaetlyn chuckled. “It's normal though. He makes friends with everyone. If I remember correctly, you were the same way.”

“I guess I was, yeah. Harry says I still am. Can't help it really. I just like people.” Niall shrugged shyly.

“So does Rory. He gets that from you I guess. I can call him over now that you're here.” Kaetlyn offers but Niall shakes his head, telling her to let him enjoy himself. He doesn't have anywhere else to be today, there's no need to rush.

So they sit down on the bench watching and talking, Niall asking questions, Kaetlyn answering all of them honestly, not holding anything back. She even pulled a book out of her handbag to show him, full of things she saved from his childhood, pictures, awards, report cards. Niall looked at all of it, his eyes filled with tears as he took it all in. They were happy tears though. He was so proud of his son already and he didn't even know him.

They're so engrossed in the book, Kaetlyn telling him a story about a certain picture when a soft voice interrupts, the Irish lilt clear and obvious. “Hello.”

Niall's head snapped up quickly, his eyes widening as he takes in the boy in front of him. He was all Niall for the most part, except Niall could tell he was going to be taller than him by the time he was fully grown. He must get that from Kaetlyn's side of the family since Niall is only 5'8. His nose was Kaetlyn's as well and he didn't have Niall's stick thin legs. They were long and muscular, not unusual for a Football player. All that running builds up muscle in the thighs and calves. Everything else was Niall though. The colour brown of his hair, the shape and colour blue of his eyes, even the faint freckles across his cheekbones and the dimple in his chin belong to Niall. He's so overwhelmed by it all for a moment that he thinks he might not be able to speak but he somehow manages a shaky “H-hi.”

“Rory, love, this is your Dad, Niall.” Kaetlyn says softly, her hand reaching out to comfortably rest on her sons forearm.

The boy rolled his eyes, a crooked smile appearing on his face “No offence Mam but I kind of figured that out already. I'm his mini-me aren't I?”

Niall's eyes widened even more than they already were and before he realized it he was letting out a bark of laughter. This kid before him was brilliant and cheeky and he was Niall's. He couldn't be more in love with him.

“Cheeky,” Kaetlyn gave her son a look but Niall could see it was fond. She was clearly used to Rory's quick wit and sarcasm.

Rory shrugged a shoulder, and stared down at Niall with a shy smile on his face. His hands were clasped behind his back and the toe of his cleat was digging a hole into the grass. “It's nice to meet you.”

A slow, wide smile appeared on Niall's face and he had to swallow a few times to gather himself before he spoke “It's nice to meet you, too, Rory. Your Mum was just telling me a bit about you.”

“Oh God,” Rory shook his head “She's brought the book. God help you when she brings out the book. It usually means three hours of the Rory show whether you want to hear it or not.”

“Well,” Niall shrugs a shoulder and smiles up at his son “I have three hours and I definitely want to hear it.”

“Oh,” Rory said softly, his cheeks turning a bit pink “Well if you want to then I guess it's okay.”

“Would you like to sit down?” Niall motioned to the spot on the bench next to him “We could talk for a bit if you like?”

“Okay,” Rory carefully takes the seat next to Niall, reaching over for the bottle of Gatorade his Mum passed him.

“You can ask me questions if you want. So you can learn a bit about me. I'll answer anything. I don't mind.” Niall offers.

“Yeah,” Rory nods slowly “You can ask me stuff too if you want. I'm cool with that.”

Niall decides to start with football “I was watching you playing footie for a bit. You're really good. Proper good.”

“Thanks,” Rory's cheeks turned pink again at Niall's compliment and Niall thought his heart might burst with how in love with this boy he was already “I've loved footie since I could walk, Mam says. Apparently I would kick a beach ball around all the time until I got a bit older and she got me a proper football. Do you like football?”

“Love it,” Niall said with a big smile “I've been playing since I was small, same as you. I played in high school on the school team but it was always just a fun hobby for me. I didn't put the extra work in like you do. Now I just play on Sundays with a bunch of mates, right here in this park actually and of course I'm always watching it on the telly.”

“That's cool. Who's your team?” Rory looked at Niall curiously.

“Well that'd have to be Chelsea. I work for the Club but I was a fan before I did.” Niall explained.

“No shit??” Rory stared at Niall, mouth agape and eyes wide.

“Language!” Kaetlyn spoke up, pointing her finger at Rory.

“Yeah, yeah,” Rory waves a hand absentmindedly in his Mum's direction “Do you really? Work for Chelsea?”

“I really do,” Niall offered “But don't get too excited. I work on the business side. I'm not actually working with the team.”

“Yeah but...you must know everyone and I bet you can see any match you want. I bet they let their employees do that.” Rory is still wide eyed, looking at Niall like Niall was his hero or something.

“They do. I see as many matches as I can. I'd be happy to take you sometime. Maybe we could make a day of it. It would help us get to know each other better. If your Mum is alright with it.” Niall says, making sure he doesn't step on Kaetlyn's toes.

“Yeah, it's fine with me. We can set it up sometime soon. Let me know when you're available to take him.” Kaetlyn says easily.

“Yeah I-I'd love to go. Thank you...um-” Rory stops abruptly, looking at Niall with a pained expression and Niall knows immediately what's wrong.

“You can call me Niall if you want. It's okay.” Niall assures him.

“Okay I guess that's okay for now,” Rory says “Um so like...you live here in Chelsea right?”

“I do, yeah. Makes the commute to work a lot easier. I'm not working right now, though. I took a leave of absence until January. I just got married in April and my husband travels a lot so I decided to travel with him for awhile.” Niall explains.

“Oh,” Rory stops, looking thoughtful for a moment “What's his name? Your husband I mean?”

“Harry,” Niall tells him, unable to keep the big smile off his face at the mention of his husband.

“Does he- does he know about me?” Rory asked tentatively, uncertainty in his eyes. The poor boy must be wondering if his father's husband wants anything to do with a fifteen year old kid he didn't sign up for.

“He does know about you. He's very excited to meet you sometime. I guarantee you he's home right now baking something. He bakes when he's nervous or anxious. There'll probably be five cakes sitting on the counter by the time I get home.”

“Seriously?” Rory snorted “If there are, can you send one to my house?”

“Rory!!” Kaetlyn groaned, smacking her son lightly on the back of the head.

“What?? Mam it's cake. They're not gonna eat it all...right?” Rory swings his head back in Niall's direction, one eyebrow raised, waiting for an answer.

“No, we wouldn't,” Niall laughs “And if there are baked goods at home when I get there, I will absolutely bring some to you if your Mum tells me where to bring them.”

“Brilliant!” Rory beams at Niall nearly taking his breath away with how beautiful he was. He's cheeky, charming, and so full of light. Niall just wants to hug him and never let him go. “Do you have pictures of you and Harry? Do you guys have any kids?”

“I do and we don't. Not yet anyway. Someday though. Right now we just want to get to know you if that's okay with you?” Niall asks hopefully.

“Yeah,” Rory nodded “I-I want to. I'd like to meet Harry, too, if he wants.”

“He can't wait to meet you. I should probably tell you about him first. Here...” Niall reaches into his pocket to grab his phone, opening it up and finding the photo app. He pulls up a picture of him and Harry together and hands Rory the phone “ That's Harry.”

Rory takes the phone from Niall and studies the picture for a few moments. Niall waits, expecting to hear the normal 'oh my God he's famous' line but what Rory says instead is “Have you ever lost anything in those dimples? Jesus.”

Niall bursts out laughing, his loud, boisterous laugh that Harry always says is infectious “Oh my God. That was good. You're quite cheeky aren't you? I like it. It'll keep me on my toes I expect.”

Rory beamed at Niall, clearly chuffed that he was able to make his Dad laugh so much and so loud. Niall stared back at him, his laughter slowed down to just a giggle and they grin at each other, like they've known each other all along and not for just a half an hour.

“Do you recognize him?” Niall asks after awhile.

“Sort of?” Rory screws his face up a bit, thinking hard about where he might have seen Harry “I think I've seen him on the telly but I didn't really pay attention much. He sings right?”

“He does, yeah,” Niall confirmed “I felt like I should let you know who he is because as you get to know me and Harry, you'll probably see people staring at us or people taking pictures, you'll see Harry on the tabloids all the time but everything they say is untrue so don't concern yourself about that. We just want you to be prepared. We don't want you to feel overwhelmed by it all. We're going to do everything we can to protect you from it all but it's inevitable that you'll see your face on the internet at some point or in the papers.”

Rory nodded as he took in Niall's words, staring down at his hands while he thought about it “I think...it won't bother me too much. As long as they stay out of my way on the pitch then they can take my picture all they want. Don't know why they'd want to since I'm not famous but they gotta do what they gotta do right?”

“Your Mum wasn't kidding when she said you were mature for your age,” Niall said to his son, a look of admiration in his eyes for this boy who was so easily taking everything in stride. Not letting it complicate his life at all, simply rolling with the punches basically.

“I don't know. I guess? I mean, how is a fifteen year old supposed to act? I don't really know. I'm just me I guess. Don't really see the point in getting all dramatic about stuff or bent out of shape about stuff. It wastes too much energy. I swear last week I thought my brain was going to turn to mush in maths because the two girls sitting in front of me spent half an hour talking about their hair. Apparently it didn't curl properly that morning and her life was over.” Rory rolled his eyes. “It really took all my energy to keep my mouth shut.”

“Hair is important to a girl, Rory. Makeup too. Someday some girl is going to spend three hours doing her hair and makeup to go on a date with you. She'll just want to look nice for you.” Kaetlyn teases.

“Well if nice involves three inches of powder on their face and goop on their eyes then count me out,” Rory scoffs “Who wants to kiss someone's cheek and get a mouth full of that powdery stuff girls have on their face? I think they look good without that stuff. Don't see the point of it.”

“Don't kiss their cheek then,” Kaetlyn smirks at her son.

Rory turns to stare at her with such a deadpan look on his face, Niall bursts out laughing again, his elbows pressed into his knees as he leans over.

“Oh because the lips are so much better? Then you just get a mouth full of flavoured lip balm or whatever the hell girls wear. Might as well just go eat a stick of lipstick, I reckon.” Rory rolls his eyes, the corner of his lips twitching up as he watches Niall laughing.

“You're impossible,” Kaetlyn says to her son but she's laughing also, enjoying the fact that her son feels comfortable enough to be himself around his father.

“Niall agrees with me, right?” Rory elbows Niall slightly “Unless Harry wears lipstick...in which case forget everything I just said.”

“No,” Niall's laughing so hard now, he's sure his face is red “No, he doesn't wear lipstick.”

“Okay,” Rory shrugged, his big smile back on his face as he sits comfortably next to Niall on the bench.

“Hey,” Niall taps his son on the leg “Want to have a bit of a kick around?”

“Yeah!” Rory jumped up quickly, bending down to pick up his football “Let's go!”

Niall stood up and looked behind him at Kaetlyn. She had a big smile on her face and she nodded slightly at Niall, telling him to go on and enjoy his son.

That's exactly what Niall did.

~~~

Harry's at the front door flinging it open before Niall is even halfway up the drive four hours later. He knows Harry has been anxiously awaiting to hear how it went with Rory, so he's not surprised he came running out the moment he realized their gate was opening and someone was entering the property. Niall smiled widely when he saw him and jogged the rest of the way, jumping into Harry's arms, knowing full well that his husband would catch him and hold him up.

“Harry,” Niall grins against Harry's neck “He's so amazing, Harry. Oh my God. I don't even know where to start. I just spent four hours with my son, H.”

“I'm so happy it went well, love. So incredibly happy,” Harry whispers in his ear. His arms are wrapped low around Niall's waist and he's still holding him against his body, a couple of inches off the ground. “I want to hear all about it. I want to hear all about him. What he's like and such.”

“Yeah, of course. I can't wait to tell you everything. Let's go inside, yeah? Want a beer after that. I'm so hyped!” Niall can't help but laugh. He plants a big, wet kiss on Harry's lips as Harry puts him down, then the two of them are walking into their house, Harry laughing as well and tapping Niall on the arse.

“I knew you were home baking,” Niall cackled as he entered the kitchen and saw all the cookies cooling on the counters. There was also a cake and a pie and he makes note to remember to tell Harry to save the cake for Rory.

“Well obviously! I was nervous and anxious, wondering how things were going. I had to keep busy,” Harry pouted. He opened up the refrigerator and grabs a beer for Niall and himself then stands with his hip cocked against the counter, waiting for Niall to talk.

“H...he's incredible. He's amazingly talented at football, like proper talented. Kaetlyn says he doesn't mind the hard work he puts in because he loves it and hopes to play professionally one day. If he keeps going the way he's going, I think it's a very real possibility too!” Niall begins, gushing already.

“Yeah? We'll make sure he keeps at it then. Whatever he needs. We've already got the goals set up in the back because you and Louis are children and have to have a place to have a kick around, he'll make good use of that,” Harry laughs and pulls his arm into his chest to try and avoid Niall's playful slap. “We'll make sure he gets to practices and matches and all that. It'll be great!”

“Yeah and he runs in the mornings sometimes, for cardio. I was thinking he might go with you sometimes. Not sure if he prefers to run alone or not but it's an option right? I want you to bond with him too. You're going to love him, H. My god he's so smart, sensible, level headed and cheeky. Oh my God the cheek on that one. I was laughing so hard. He asked if I had any pictures of me and you. I showed him and the first words out of his mouth were 'have you ever lost anything in those dimples' I think I just about choked!” Niall laughs loudly at the memory of it.

“He said what?” Harry barks out an incredulous laugh, the one that makes him sound like a seal. “I take it he's okay with me then?”

“Yeah. I brought you up so I could let him know about our lifestyle sometimes, with the paps and fans and he didn't seem fazed. He doesn't care if people take his picture as long as they don't disrupt his football,” Niall chuckles “He also didn't even blink when I told him I got married in April and was travelling a lot with my husband. I was happy to see he isn't homophobic. I know Kaetlyn said she never talked bad about me to him but after finding out I was gay, it hurt her so I wasn't sure if she ever spoke negatively about gay people.”

“That's good. Young people these days are rarely homophobic I find. It's still mostly the older generations who grew up in a different time. Every year that goes by, things slowly get better for the LGBTQ community. Makes me really proud.” Harry smiles softly “Anyway, have you set up another time to see him again?”

“Well I'll probably see him tomorrow since he made me promise I'd bring him cake if you made some,” Niall chuckles “I have their address so I'll text Kaetlyn tomorrow about it. She said she was fine with it anyway. Then he asked if I wanted to go watch football practice after school Monday. I told him I would be there and we could have dinner after. I can bring him home when we're done. Ya know...I thought we'd have to move a lot slower than this but he's taking it all really well. He seems to have good judgment and Kaetlyn said to trust him. If he asks to see me then he wants to see me and he's fine. So...”

“That's good. We'll let him dictate the pace, yeah? He'll be okay. I can't wait to meet him. He sounds really lovely and you...you are practically glowing. You fell in love with your son today didn't you?” Harry asked softly. Niall nodded, a blush filling his cheeks “I bet he loved you, too. If he didn't, he will. Just as much as I do.”

“I hope so. I just want him to feel comfortable. It's not going to be easy for him losing his Mum. If he has to go through that, I want him to trust me and know I'll be there for him, that he can talk to me about anything.” Niall chews his bottom lip, the concern evident on his face.

“He will. We'll make sure he knows he can trust the both of us. Don't worry about it, okay? You're amazing. You'll handle it all just fine.” Harry reached out and brushed his fingers over Niall's cheek “Now...let's try to relax a bit. Sit down and have a few beer, keep me company while I start dinner, yeah?”

Niall nodded and leaned forward to kiss his husband “Yeah. Love you, ya know. So much, darlin'”

“Love you too, baby. Always.”

 

~~~

 

Niall ends up seeing his son three times the next week. He went over to Kaetlyn's flat the day after they met with the cake like he promised. Rory's eyes lit up when he opened the door to Niall. He obviously wasn't expecting Niall to actually bring a cake but was so pleased that he did. He ended up asking Niall if he wanted to sit and have a piece with them and Niall of course said yes, so he ended up spending an hour with him, eating cake, drinking milk and learning more about his life.

The day after that, on Monday afternoon, Niall went to watch Rory's football practice after school. He sat up in the stands, keeping to himself so he could watch his son without any distractions. He also didn't want to be recognized by any of the parents who might be a fan of Harry's or have kids who are fans of Harry's. The last thing he wanted was to cause a ruckus at his son's football practice.

The practice was ninety minutes long and by the end of it, Niall was sure his face was frozen in a smile. He didn't stop smiling once the whole time, his heart filling up more and more with love for this beautiful, amazing boy he had a hand in creating.

Afterwards, Rory ran to meet him in the stands and they left together, hopping into Niall's Range Rover and chatting about the practice and football in general. Niall got the feeling Rory was excited he had someone to talk football with other than his friends and Niall was just happy he could fill that void for him.

Once they decided on somewhere casual and low key to eat, they spent another hour talking and laughing while they ate, learning as much about each other as they could. Neither one of them were happy they lost fifteen years together but they were more than happy to make up for lost time.

Niall dropped him off at home around seven, making plans to see each other again on Friday to do the same thing they did that day. Niall was on cloud nine the whole week and it got even better when on Friday after football practice, Rory asked Niall if Harry would want to meet them for dinner.

Pleased that his son wanted to meet his husband, he asked how Rory felt about going to his and Harry's house and ordering take away or he and Harry could cook something? Rory was happy with the idea and after checking with Kaetlyn, they made the drive back to Chelsea so Harry could meet Rory for the first time.

When Niall stopped the car outside the gate in front of their driveway and opened his window to punch in the security code, he could see Rory's eyes widen out of the corner of his eye and smiled to himself because yeah, Niall gets it. The security is necessary if he and Harry want any privacy but it took Niall a bit of time to get used to as well.

“Alright, here we are,” Niall said as he shut off the car “Are you sure you're okay with this? I probably should have called Harry. I didn't think of it and by the looks of it, it looks like one of our mates is here.” Niall pointed at a car parked next to one of Harry's.

“I'm okay with it,” Rory shrugged his shoulders “I like meeting new people but if you'd rather your mate not meet me yet-”

“No!!” Niall cuts him off quickly “No, that's not what I meant. I didn't want to overwhelm you with too many people, that's all.”

“Niall,” Rory does that deadpan look again “It's two people. I think I can handle it. Just today I ate lunch with five people.”

Niall broke out into laughter, reaching over and punching his son lightly on the arm “That cheeky mouth is gonna get you in trouble one day.”

“Nah,” Rory grinned and opened up the passenger door of the car, climbing out “If anyone is offended by it, I'll just charm them with my smile.”

“Of course you will,” Niall chuckled and led the way to the front door “And what a fine smile it is.”

Rory snorted and rolled his eyes “It's your smile.”

“Exactly!” Niall beamed at his son over his shoulder, his heart filling with love and warmth as he listens to his son's loud laughter which is much like his own.

Once they're inside the house they toe off their shoes and Niall leads the way toward the kitchen “H? I'm home!”

Niall hears noise from upstairs then a minute later they can hear Harry's feet as he jogs down the stairs.

“Niall? Why are you home? I thought you were having dinner with...oh!” Harry stops dead as he walks into the kitchen, his wide eyes fixed on Rory.

“Harry...” There's a huge smile on Niall's face as he lays a hand on his son's shoulder “This is Rory. My son. Rory, this is Harry, my very wonderful husband.”

“Hiiii,” Harry fixes his biggest grin on Rory. His hands are behind his back and he looks like he wants to jump forward and hug the boy but is restraining himself “It's so incredible to meet you. Niall has been telling me so much about you.”

“Hello,” Rory looks up at Harry, only a little bit shy “It's nice to meet you too. He talks about you a lot as well.”

“It's true, I talk about the both of you. You're me two favourite people. Sue me!” Niall shrugs his shoulders while reaching behind him on the Island where there's a dish filled with jelly beans. He takes a hand full and starts popping them in his mouth, somehow managing to chew them with the big grin still on his face. “Where's Liam? I saw his car outside.”

“Oh! He was here earlier for a bit then called a car to pick him up. He's going straight to a restaurant to meet some mates from high school and didn't want to bring his car since he'll be drinking so he left it here.” Harry explained “So what brings you two here? I thought you were eating at a restaurant?” Harry asks “For the record, I'm quite glad you didn't”

“We were going to but Rory asked if you would want to meet us so I suggested we come back here. Figured you and I could cook or we could just get takeaway.” Niall explains.

“Hmmm,” Harry thinks about it for a minute “What's your favourite food, Rory?”

“Candy,” The boy answers immediately. Without even thinking about it, Niall pushes the dish of jellybeans toward Rory and he hums, reaching his hand in and taking out a handful.

“Oh my God!” Harry squawks “What is happening right now? How did you only just meet this boy and you're already so much alike?”

“Uncanny innit?” Niall chews thoughtfully on his candy “Didn't think these types of things were hereditary. Or, maybe they really aren't and it's just a weird coincidence.”

“I love it!” Harry claps his hands in front of him “It's like having two Niall's around.”

“You've brainwashed him, haven't you?” Rory eyes his father suspiciously “I feel like normal married couples don't wish to have another version of their husband or wife around?”

Harry looks at Niall, his eyes wide and mouth hanging open, half smiling “Oh my God. Can we keep him? He's not even thinking about this stuff, it just comes out of his mouth. He could completely own Louis.”

“Who's Louis?” Rory asks, his eyes shifting back and forth between the two men.

“He's a good mate of ours and Harry's manager,” Niall tells Rory, then he turns his attention to Harry “And yes, we can absolutely keep him. Are you okay with that Rory?”

“Yeah, I'm okay with that,” Rory smiles softly at the both of them “I'm- I'm actually really happy to be here. I've always wondered what it would feel like to have a Dad. Now I feel like I'm getting two.”

Rory looks down at his hands, feeling shy, and Harry takes the opportunity to stare into Niall's eyes, his eyes filling up with tears because this beautiful boy just referred to him as a Dad. He basically admitted that he sees Harry as a father figure like Niall.

“I want to be that for you,” Harry admits tentatively. He's not sure if it's too soon to be bringing this up since it's only the third time Rory has met Niall and the first time he's met Harry. Rory broached the subject, though, and from what Harry can tell, he's every bit as mature as his Mum said he was. “But I don't want you to feel like you have to think of me that way just because I'm your Dad's husband. We can be just friends or we can be both, whatever you're comfortable with okay? We don't have to decide anything right now. We're just getting started. We can take our time I just want you to be happy and comfortable here.”

“Thank you,” Rory's voice is soft, a slight hitch in it “I'm not really sure what else to say right now. Got a lot going on in my head.”

“Thank you is more than enough,” Niall answers, his arm coming up to slide across Rory's shoulders It's the first contact they've had. Niall has wanted nothing more than to pull his son into a hug every time he sees him but he didn't want to overwhelm him so he held off until now. Rory didn't pull away. In fact, he seemed to lean into the embrace. Niall had to bite his lip to keep from letting the tears fall down his cheeks.

“Well, you know, it's Friday night. Nothing heavy needs to be talked about tonight. We'll get dinner and if you don't have plans with your friends and your Mum says it's okay, you can stay awhile and hang out with us after dinner. Does that sound alright?” Harry asks.

“Yes. I'm cool with that.” Rory confirms.

“Good. So besides candy, what is your favourite food?” Harry asks teasingly.

“I don't think I really have one. I like all food.” Rory shrugs.

“Alright. We could make pizza then? I'll get started on the dough right now and maybe Niall can show you around a bit,” Harry suggests.

“Homemade pizza? I've never had homemade pizza. Whenever we have pizza we just order it and have it delivered.” Rory says.

“Then you're in for a treat because Harry is a brilliant cook and his pizza is delicious.” Niall grins. “So we'll get out of his way and let him get to work. I'll show you around a bit, yeah?”

“Okay,” Rory nodded then turned to Harry “Thank you. For making dinner.”

“You're welcome,” Harry smiles warmly, his hand coming up to squeeze Rory's arm gently “See you both in a bit.”

Niall held out one arm, indicating for Rory to lead the way out of the kitchen, Niall following close behind. He stopped in front of Harry and kissed his cheek before moving his lips over Harry's ear and whispering “I love you. You're getting so fucking lucky tonight.”

“Oi!” Rory's voice rang through the air sounding scandalized “No dirty talk. There's a child present.”

“What?” Harry squeaks “How did you even hear that?”

“I didn't” Rory smirked “But you just confirmed it.” Then he headed off down the hallway, the sound of his loud cackle filling the house, just the same way Niall's always did.

“Oh my God,” Harry giggled, pressing his forehead against Niall's “I love him. I love him already, Niall.”

“Me too,” Niall laughed and wrapped his arms around Harry in a quick hug “Incredible isn't he? We'll talk about it later. I'm gonna show him around. We'll probably be in the game room after. Come find us okay?”

“I will. Go enjoy your son. I love you,” Harry kisses Niall's lips quickly then taps his bum playfully as he's on the way out.

 

~~~

 

Niall spent the next twenty minutes showing Rory around their house. He started with the top two floors that were filled with the bedrooms. The top floor was filled largely by the master bedroom with it's walk in closet and large en suite. There was also one more bedroom, medium sized, that Harry and Niall were planning on using as a nursery. When they had viewed the house they both had the same idea, laughing when they both voiced it to each other. It was perfect since they'd want their newborn babies close to them, then when the child is old enough he or she can move to a bedroom on the second floor, leaving the nursery free for when they have their next baby.

The second floor had four bedrooms, all decent sizes. They didn't know if they'd be lucky enough to have four children but they wanted a big family so they prepared for it in the hopes that it would happen. One of those bedrooms would be Rory's now and Niall couldn't even began to describe how happy that made him.

On the first floor, or ground level floor, was the large living room that was a bit fancy and where Harry especially loved to entertain guests, the kitchen, the dining room off the kitchen along with the utility room, a smaller living room that was more casual and was where they would sit and watch the telly and hang out with their good friends, and an office, mostly for Niall to work in, Harry rarely used it. There was also a small room they didn't use. It was going to be a playroom for when they have kids and until then they haven't really been using it except for storage sometimes.

Lastly, Niall showed Rory the basement which was completely refurbished to their liking and held a recording area for Harry where they both kept their collection of guitars as well as other instruments, and their game room where all the game consoles were set up. There was also billiards and darts but mostly they used the game consoles that were hooked up to the large screen telly.

It was an expensive house for sure but what really made them fall in love with it was it had so much room for a large family, a huge backyard and plenty of privacy. All those things were what made Niall feel okay with Harry putting up the bulk of the money for the house. They weren't married when they bought it but even then Harry kept saying what was his was also Niall's and Niall was okay with that now. He was a bit worried about it all in the beginning of their relationship but he learned to become okay with it when he saw that Harry knew he wasn't interested in his money, only his heart.

When they entered into the recording area, Rory had stood with his eyes wide, looking around at all the guitars.

“I guess Harry doesn't just sing,” Rory gestures toward the guitars “He plays as well. Does he play on his albums?”

“He does play on his albums. In concert he doesn't play on every song though. He really likes to work the stage and give the fans a great show. It's kind of hard to run around singing with a guitar strapped to your shoulder.” Niall explains “But...actually...a lot of these guitars are mine. Most I had before I even met Harry.”

“Seriously?” Rory's head swung around toward his father “You play?”

“I do, yeah,” Niall picked up an acoustic, his fingers gently picking at the strings, playing a random melody “I've played since I was ten. Guitar and footie were pretty much my hobbies growing up.”

“So you don't play professionally?” Rory asks.

“Nah. Never wanted to. Was just happy with it as a hobby.” Niall explains “Though Harry doesn't know how to take no for an answer so I've played with him a few times. He wrote a song about us and always asks me to play that song with him at his shows. Played it once on the late night show that Jimmy Kimmel does in America. I also played on that song on his album. It was important to him so I didn't mind.”

“Wow!” Rory continues to look around at everything, wonder in his eyes and awe in his voice “Could I- could you show me how to play someday?”

“You want to learn guitar?” Niall asks in surprise, his eyebrows raised.

“If you have time? It seems like fun.”

“Okay. We'll definitely do that then. I'll have time. I'll always have time for you. Always.” Niall makes sure to meet Rory's eyes, letting him know he was serious.

Later, once Harry's made the pizza's and put them in the oven, he comes downstairs and finds Niall and Rory completely engrossed in a game of FIFA.

Rory must notice Harry out of the corner of his eye because thirty seconds after Harry enters the room, he starts talking, his eyes never leaving the screen “Harry! Get over here. Your husband is keeping up with me in this game more than I thought he would. You need to come distract him. Seduce him or something.”

Harry throws himself down across one of the couches in the room, his loud bark of laughter filling the room. Niall's eyes widen in disbelief but he doesn't take his eyes off the screen, continuing to keep pace with his son in the game.

“Oi! Don't try and use my husband against me. It won't work. You'll still lose.”

“I never lose!” Rory said loudly, then quick as lightning, his hand was reaching out and slapping the controller out of Niall's hand allowing Rory to get the upper hand.

“You did not just do that!” Niall gasped. He turned his head and stared at his son in disbelief while Harry continued to laugh loudly on the couch behind them.

“I did!” Rory sounded gleeful as he scored another goal, effectively beating Niall.

“You- You can't even say anything, Niall,” Harry gasped through his laughter “You did that very same thing to Louis one time. He didn't speak to you for a week.”

“I know he didn't. That's exactly why I did it.” Niall smirked.

The three of them burst into loud laughter after that, taking a good ten minutes to calm down because every time they did, one of them would catch the others eye and set all three of them off again.

Eventually the pizza's were done and they moved back upstairs to the kitchen where the three of them polished off both pizza's and a full two litre bottle of coke. They moved to the living room afterwards, watching telly for awhile and talking quietly, Harry and Niall getting to know this boy they were already so in love with.

It was a really good night. Niall drove Rory home around eleven that night and Rory invited him and Harry to come watch his football match on Tuesday after school. Niall agrees immediately but lets him know Harry wont be there this time as he's leaving for the European leg of his tour on Sunday night.

When Niall got home close to midnight, Harry was waiting for him in their bed, a huge smile lighting up his face when Niall walked through the bedroom door.

“Niall...he's amazing. Oh my God, he's so cheeky, just like you said. Reminds me of you.” Harry gushes “He's so sweet and polite as well. Kaetlyn's done a good job raising him. Whatever her mistakes are, she did right by her son in the way she raised him.”

“She did,” Niall agreed. He paused for a moment to lift his shirt off over his head and push his jeans down his hips and off his legs. He picked them up and brought them into the en suite, throwing them into the clothes hamper, then he picked up his toothbrush, filling it with toothpaste before poking his head out around the corner to look at Harry “I wish I had been there to raise him with her. I should have been. I deserved to be but regardless, he was raised well. I couldn't be more proud of him.”

Harry hummed his agreement then picked up the remote to turn off the telly while he waited for Niall to finish brushing his teeth and join him in bed. Once he does, Harry wastes no time cuddling up to him, one leg thrown over Niall's lower body and his face buried in Niall's neck.

“You were great tonight,” Niall broke the silence after awhile “He really likes you, I could tell. I'm sorry for not warning you we were coming. I was so pleased he asked to meet you that I just drove here and didn't think of it. Thank God you were wearing clothes when you came down the stairs and around the corner.”

Harry barked out a laugh, playfully sinking his teeth into Niall's shoulder “He would have only had something cheeky to say. He's so quick, so witty. His laugh is just like yours. I adore him. I really do.”

“I know you do,” Niall smiled even though Harry couldn't see him. “Thank you again for being understanding about the tour. I know I was meant to be there with you but-”

“You've already thanked me a million times, even though it was completely unnecessary. We had all summer together. Rory's your son. You've just met him and he needs you. You need to continue getting to know each other. You need to be here if something happens to Kaetlyn as well. I don't want him to go through that alone. He's so strong and brave but he's still losing his Mum and you need to be with him if anything happens.” Harry says and he's adamant about it. “It's only for a month, then I'm back for the UK portion of the tour so I can see you and Rory more often.”

“Listen to you,” Niall grins and shifts his body so he can push Harry onto his back and roll over on top of him, resting in between his legs “Talking like a proper Dad already. God, darlin', you're gonna be such a great Dad. I can't wait to have kids with you. It's probably going to kill me watching you with our little ones.”

Harry giggles, his arms coming up to wrap around Niall's neck “Me too. Just seeing you with Rory tonight made me crazy. You're already so good with him. I can't wait to see you with our little ones either.”

“Well then,” Niall stared down at his husband, his breath hitching at how beautiful he is “I do believe I said you'd be getting lucky tonight.”

“You did,” Harry pulled Niall's head down so he could kiss him long and slow, his tongue delving into Niall's mouth and brushing against Niall's own tongue. “That's why I opened myself up while you were gone. Want your cock in me right away.”

Niall groaned and pressed his forehead against Harry's, exhaling a deep breath “Every time you do this, I'm never prepared for it even though I feel I should be. You're a little minx and I fucking love you.”

“I love you, too,” Harry murmured, pressing his lips against Niall's in a hot kiss “Now fuck me.”

Niall did. Twice.

 

~~~

 

After Harry left for Europe on his tour, Niall poured all his energy into his son. He went to every football game and practice, spent Saturday afternoons kicking the football around and Rory even said he'd like to try golf after listening to Niall's many stories of his and Harry's games together. He's not bad either, a quick study but the main thing is, they had fun together. They were building a relationship and Niall knew Rory was trusting him more and more everyday.

Friday nights quickly became their night. Niall would pick Rory up and they'd do something together. Sometimes they'd head to the cinema to see the latest action film, another time they went for ice cream where Rory told Niall all about his group of friends, their names and stuff they do together, and then on another Friday they just stayed home ordering takeaway, playing games in the game room and Niall began teaching Rory the basics of guitar playing.

On the fourth Friday, once Harry had been gone a month and the European leg of his tour was almost over, Niall had a surprise for Rory, provided Kaetlyn was okay with it.

“Are you well enough to fly and be out of the country for a couple of days?” Niall asked Kaetlyn early in the week when he dropped over to her flat while Rory was in school.

“I feel okay. I get tired easily but I take naps and they help. Why?” Kaetlyn looked at Niall suspiciously.

“Well...Harry had an idea and I think it's a good one but it depends on you being completely honest with me. Don't try and be brave and do too much if you can't.” Niall says.

“Why don't you tell me what's going on first, then I'll let you know how I feel?” Kaetlyn says with a raised eyebrow. Okay. Rory obviously gets that from the both of them.

“Harry's tour stops in Barcelona on Friday. He's got shows on Friday and Saturday night. On Saturday afternoon, Barcelona has a footie match at home so Harry asked if the three of us would like to fly there for a couple days? He's got tickets for the match and then we could see his show if you want.”

“Niall,” Kaetlyn sighs “If you want to take Rory to see a match you can. It's on the weekend so he won't miss school and you're his Dad, I trust you to take care of him in another country. You don't have to take me with you.”

“No, I know, that's not why we want you to come. We were talking and Harry thought it would be nice for Rory to get to do something with his Mum and Dad together. It- it threw me for a loop because I never thought of that myself but it's a good idea, yeah? Rory deserves this I think.”

“Wow,” Kaetlyn swallowed, her eyes glassy from holding backs tears “That's very sweet of him. I would love to do it. Rory will lose his mind when you tell him.”

“Are you sure you're well enough. You can rest on Friday night and not go to Harry's show, save your energy for Saturday if you want. We'll be flying privately as well, so no waiting around airports because of long flight delays”

“I'm sure. I feel okay enough. Besides, I'm dying Niall. I want to do as much as I can before I go and I want nothing more than to watch my son having fun watching the sport he loves with the Dad he adores and is starting to love.” Kaetlyn assures Niall.

“He- what? He loves me? He said that?” Niall can't hide the tremor in his voice as he tries to hold back tears of his own.

“He didn't have to. You're all he talks about. His friends think you're so cool and keep asking when they're going to meet you. You play guitar and love footie, you're a legend to them.” Kaetlyn laughs.

“Oh,” Niall says softly, sounding dumbfounded “You- you really think he loves me?”

“I know he does. It's written all over his face. He really likes Harry, too. They text sometimes. Harry sends him selfies from all the different cities he's in. He makes Rory laugh and that's good enough for me. I think Rory is very lucky his Dad is married to such a great person.”

“He is...God he's so great. He loves Rory. Fell in love with him the first time they met. He'll be good to him. He'll treat him like Rory's his own child.” Niall can barely contain his emotions anymore. He feels like he's about to sob right there in the kitchen that belongs to the mother of his son.

“I have no doubts about that. You two will be the best for him. He'll be happy with you and that's all I can ask for.”

~~~

 

Kaetlyn lets Niall be the one to tell Rory the plans for the weekend. He waits until Thursday night so that Rory doesn't have to spend the whole week so excited he wouldn't be able to sleep.

“We're going where?” Rory's eyes practically pop out of his head when Niall tells him.

“Barcelona,” Niall repeats himself, laughing at the look on his sons face “We'll leave tomorrow after you get out of school and fly back on Sunday.”

“Barcelona. Football match. Tomorrow.” Random words keep coming out of Rory's mouth and Niall begins to wonder if he's shocked the boy so much he's forgotten how to form proper sentences.

“Yes, yes, and yes,” Niall laughs “Harry's arranged it all. Your Mum is coming too.”

“Oh my God,” Rory whispers. He blinks a few times then he appears to snap out of it because he starts screaming “HOLY SHIT!! WE'RE GOING TO BARCELONA!!”

Rory starts jumping around the room, repeating that same sentence over and over again while Niall stands watching him gleefully. Then he flings his body at Niall, wrapping his arms around his neck and hugging him tight. It completely catches Niall off guard but he snaps out of it quickly and wraps his arms around his son for the first time.

The feeling is indescribable. This boy, who is his flesh and blood, was in his arms. Niall could feel his heart beating, could smell whatever shampoo he uses, can feel how warm his skin is as he cups his neck with one hand, holding him close. It was amazing. He was amazing and he was Niall's.

~~~

They arrive in Barcelona the following evening and the car takes them to the hotel to drop their bags. Kaetlyn decides to stay in and rest so she will be able to enjoy the match the next day but she urges Rory to go with Niall to the stadium where Harry was playing. She was only going to be sleeping and it would be boring for Rory.

That's how they find themselves outside the venue awhile later, meeting up with Harry's head of security so he can lead them inside.

“He on yet?” Niall asks Jerry after shaking his hand.

“Yep. Twenty minutes ago. Got them eating out of the palm of his hand already. They're quite loud tonight.” Jerry answers. He hands Niall his backstage access cards that are hanging off of blue lanyards then indicates for them to follow him in through the back where the sound of Harry singing hits them loud and clear immediately.

“Niall!!!” A blonde woman shrieks from somewhere on Niall's left and he turns his head just in time to see Harry's stylist throwing herself at him and hugging him tight “We've missed you. Glad to have you back on tour again.”

“Glad to be back, Cass,” Niall laughs and hugs her back for a minute then pulls back and motions toward a wide eyed Rory “This is my son, Rory.”

“Of course it is,” Cassie coos “He looks just like you. Welcome to the tour, Rory. We're all very happy to have you.”

Niall explains to him that Cassie is Harry's stylist, in charge of making him look good and Rory simply nods his head, saying a quiet hello to her, too much in awe to say anything else.

They continue on through the backstage area until Jerry points out the way to get out on the floor where an area right in front of the stage and to the left is cordoned off for friends and family only. If Harry doesn't have his friends or family with him, the crew usually watches the show from there. People like his PA, personal trainer, chef, publicist, manager, vocal coach, etc, etc. Now, Niall and Rory would be joining them.

“Do- do these people know about me? That lady didn't seem surprised.” Rory asks Niall as they walk side by side to the front.

“They do. After I told Harry we'd be coming, he let his crew know about you. Most of these people have been with Harry for ten years. They're his second family. Once we became a couple and eventually got married, they became my family too. They can be trusted completely and certainly would never say anything to the media. They'll welcome you with open arms. You're my son. They won't need to know anything else for them to accept you. They're good like that.” Niall tells his son with a reassuring smile.

“I don't mind. I was just surprised. It's a good thing Harry did tell them. If he hadn't, they'd have gotten a big shock when I walked in. I'm seriously like a younger version of you. It's a bit uncanny how much I look like you.” Rory says.

“It is,” Niall laughed “I like it though. I like having a son.”

Rory's cheeks pink up and he looks down shyly, a small smile on his face “I like having a dad and a...a Harry?”

Niall laughed loudly, throwing his head back and wrapping his arm around Rory's shoulders “I like having a Harry too. He's quite lovely.”

Rory's cheeks get even pinker but he laughs as well, the sound being drowned out as they enter into the seating area and the sound of the music hits them full force. There's no seats in this section, it's just a standing area and Niall leads Rory to the front, waving at crew members and saying hello as he passed.

“Wow,” Rory's eyes rake over the stadium, taking in the thousands of screaming fans “There's like...sixty thousand people here.”

“Yeah,” Niall leans close to him so he can hear him “I was a bit overwhelmed the first time I went to one of Harry's shows. I mean...I knew he was popular but I had no idea how deep the love and affection his fans have for him goes. They're all really great. They support him through everything. Kind of like having family all over the world that you maybe only see once a year but they're there ya know?”

Niall looks up at the stage where Harry has just finished a song and is drinking from a bottle of water. Once he's done, he throws the remaining water out over the fans, laughing when they scream loudly and call out that they love him.

“Barcelona!” Harry yells into his mic as he walks down the catwalk through the crowd, a huge grin on his face “How are you? Are you well?”

The crowd lets out a deafening roar and Niall can't help but grin up at his husband. Harry was in his element here. He was doing what he loved and was so, so good at it. The fans ate up every word that he said and why wouldn't they? Every word Harry said was genuine. He loved his fans, had so much fun with them and they knew that. They knew him. They knew him because he allowed them to know him, never holding back and just being himself no matter what he's doing. At the end of the day, Niall thinks that's why people love Harry so much, because he is who he is and never apologizes for it.

“Are you all enjoying the show so far?” Harry asks as he walks around the stage, waving at people, reaching down to shake their hands, catching items they throw on stage.

“Good! I'm glad you're enjoying the show. I am too,” Harry says once the crowd quiets down. Harry pauses for a moment, looking down at someone, trying to hear what they're saying “Huh? What?” He puts a hand to his ear and leans down a bit further, listening for a minute before he stands up straight again, laughing into the mic.

“This lovely young lady here in the front has just asked where Niall is,” Harry says, the crowd screaming at the mention of Niall's name “I'm going to get a complex one of these days ya know? I'm really starting to think you love my husband more than me.”

The screams continue to grow louder and Harry playfully roll his eyes “If you all must know, Niall has been home in London over the past month but...he is going to be here visiting me this weekend. In fact, his plane has probably already landed.”

The screams intensify and Niall sees one of the tech guys run out onto the stage toward Harry. He leans in close to Harry to say something into his ear and Niall knows exactly what it is when Harry's head whips around and he starts looking in Niall's direction.

The tech leaves the stage just as quickly as he had come on and Harry wastes no time lifting his mic back to his mouth and starting to walk across the stage toward the family and friends area

“I've just been told Niall is here already,” Harry's grinning as he walks across the stage. Once he gets close enough, his eyes find Niall's immediately and the two of them are grinning at each other like idiots “Hi baby. Missed you.”

Niall throws his head back, laughing at the look on his husbands face. He's not embarrassed, not in the slightest. Ever since they became a couple and Niall started showing up at Harry's shows, Harry hasn't failed to mention him even once. He talks about Niall on stage, talks about their relationship a bit and Niall doesn't mind. They've got nothing to hide and he knows the Narry fans out there absolutely love it. It's still a mystery to Niall why people adore him and Harry as a couple so much. He thinks they're a normal couple like everyone else but...Harry's fans love them together and Niall has come to love and appreciate all of Harry's fans just as much as Harry does.

Harry all of a sudden reaches down and hands his mic to a security guard and the next thing Niall knows, he's jumping down from the stage with the help of members of the security team and in the blink an eye he's got an armful of Harry.

“I'm so happy you and Rory are here.” Harry said in his ear so Niall could hear him over the noise of the crowd “I missed you so much.”

“Missed you too, darlin'” Niall says into Harry's ear. He kissed Harry's cheek just below his ear and he knew they were being shown on the big screens on either side of the stage because the crowd was going crazy and he could hear chants of 'Narry' starting up all around them.

“I should probably get back up on stage. I love you!” Harry says and squeezes Niall tightly one last time and kisses his lips before he takes off back to the stage, making sure to wink at Rory on his way.

Harry's security lift him back up on stage easily, like he weighs nothing and he's soon got his mic back in his hands and is strutting across the stage leaving Niall to admire his arse in those tight black jeans. He suspects the subtle movement of Harry's hips is for his benefit as well and makes a note to tease Harry for it later.

“Alright Barcelona! Sorry for the delay. Had to say hello to the hubby over there. You don't mind do you?” Harry asks, the grin on his face completely lighting up his face. When the crowd erupts into loud screaming again, he laughs “I didn't think so. It's actually quite good timing that Niall has arrived right now, as the next song I'm about to sing is called “Falling” and I think you all know who I wrote this song for. I hope you enjoy it.”

Harry walks back to the middle of the stage and puts his mic back in the mic stand and accepts his acoustic from a stage hand. The stadium quiets down, waiting for Harry to strum the opening chords and for his powerful voice to fill their ears. Niall takes a peek at Rory next to him, smiling fondly because his son is staring up at Harry in awe. He couldn't ask for more really. They were going to have a long road ahead of them once Kaetlyn passes but Rory seems to have easily accepted Niall as his Dad and he clearly likes Harry very much so Niall thinks they've made a really good start.

 

~~~

 

The rest of the weekend in Barcelona goes brilliantly. Niall has no doubt it's one of the best weekends of his life. The football match was awesome but for Niall it wasn't because it legitimately was a good match. It was because he got to see the look on his sons face as he took it all in. The awe on his face as he watched some of his favourite players run up and down the pitch in front of fifty thousand screaming fans. He looked so incredibly happy and Niall knows he'll never be able to keep his son happy a hundred percent of the time, but he hopes he can keep him happy most of the time and for those times his son isn't happy and going through something, Niall hopes he can be there to help him and be a strong, steady presence in his life.

Harry was also awesome. There were moments when Niall wasn't sure who was more excited, Rory or Harry. His dimples were out in full force and he was practically bouncing around the luxury box during the whole match taking so many photos Niall doesn't know how he didn't run out of storage on his phone.

It's not just the photos though. Harry made sure Kaetlyn was always comfortable and not in any pain. He also was very attentive to Rory, talking animatedly with him about his show the night before, the football match and a few other things they could do in Barcelona on Sunday afternoon before Niall, Kaetlyn and Rory flew back to England. Harry was bonding with his son and it made Niall love him more than he ever thought was possible.

The concert on Saturday night was amazing also. Niall loved watching Harry but he couldn't help sneaking peeks at Rory and Kaetlyn beside him as they laughed and danced around to the music. He even caught them singing along to some of the songs, quickly picking up the lyrics to some of the choruses.

Toward the end of the show when Harry was getting ready to sing You & I, Niall went up there with him to play guitar like he had been doing all summer in America. It was incredible as usual, being up there with his husband looking into his eyes pretty much the whole time, singing to him. He didn't miss the massive smile his son gave him either, when he came off stage and rejoined him and his Mother. Clearly being able to play guitar up on stage in front of thousands made him pretty fucking cool to his new son.

Everything went so good and that's why Niall is confused as to why Rory looks down on Sunday afternoon. He had been so talkative the whole weekend but on Sunday afternoon when they did a bit of sightseeing he was so quiet and he looked a bit sad. Harry noticed it too, because when Rory was walking ahead of them, Harry squeezed his hand and met Niall's eyes, the concern there matching his own.

When they got back to the hotel, they had a little while before they had to leave for the hotel so Niall quietly asked Kaetlyn if she noticed something off about Rory. She nodded and smiled sadly at him, suggesting Niall talk to him.

“It'll be good practice for you for when I'm gone,” She spoke softly “He trusts you. He's only known you a bit over a month but you're his Dad and he's starting to love you already. He'll open up to you, just be patient with him. Sometimes he likes to sit and think for a moment before he speaks. Likes to make sure he's using the right words to explain how he's feeling.”

So that's what Niall does. He asked Rory to come to Harry's suite until they leave for the airport and once he's sitting on the couch watching the telly, Niall sits next to him and gently nudges his knee against his son's to get his attention “Hey. Alright? Been pretty quiet today.”

Rory doesn't say anything right away, just twists his fingers around in the hem of his shirt. Harry is hovering in the doorway to the bedroom, unsure whether he should stay and support them or go and give them privacy. Niall catches his eye and shrugs slightly, not knowing what to do.

When Rory lifts his head, he flicks his gaze over to Niall before looking down at his hands again and talking “I'm okay. I guess I just-don't know how I should feel sometimes.”

Niall furrows his eyebrows, biting at his lip a bit as he tries to figure out what his son means “Do you want to tell me what you're thinking? Maybe I could help.”

Rory huffs out a breath and lets his body fall back against the back of the couch “I'm thinking that I had a lot of fun this weekend. So much fun. Then it kind of just hit me that I could have been doing this my whole life. Not fancy hotels and luxury boxes at football matches, that stuff is awesome but I can live without it. I just mean, I could have been having fun with you my whole life. We could have been doing stuff together all the time and when I think about it I get so angry. I get so angry and then I feel guilty for being angry because- because Mam's not- she's not gonna be here much longer and I shouldn't be spending my time being angry with her.”

Niall exhales a long breath, blinking his eyes rapidly to keep the tears that were filling up his eyes from falling. He makes eye contact with Harry again and his husband is standing there with two tears already falling down his cheeks and his bottom lip trembling. Niall can't help but love him fiercely in that moment for caring so much for his son.

“I think...” Niall begins slowly “...you should never be sorry or feel bad for how you feel. You have a right to feel how you feel and have your own opinion on things and nobody should ever try to take that away from you, okay? You and I...we didn't get the first fifteen years of your life together. Your Mum made a mistake, one she's very sorry for and has apologized for. We can't go back, she can't go back, but she's your Mum and she loves you so much. She understands that you're angry and she wouldn't expect you to try and feel differently just because she's sick. It would probably be unhealthy if you weren't angry. I'm angry too but I'm focused on the here and now and getting to know you. I want to be your Dad everyday until the day I die.”

“So like...you don't think it's mean that I'm angry? When I don't know how much time I have with her?” Rory looks up at Niall with wide eyes brimming with tears.

“No,” Niall says emphatically “It's not mean at all. Your Mum understands and she knows you love her very much. Your anger isn't getting in the way of you spending time with her and that's what matters.”

“Okay,” Rory says softly after sitting quietly for a few moments “I guess I'll try to do what you're doing. I'll focus on now and just be happy I have you now.”

“That sounds like a good plan.” Niall wraps his arm around Rory's shoulder to comfort him. He doesn't know if his son is a hugger or a touchy feely person but he takes the chance and is rewarded when Rory sniffles a little and swings his arms around Niall in a side hug, his head resting against Niall's shoulder.

“Thank you,” Rory speaks so softly Niall almost didn't hear him. Niall doesn't say anything back, too choked up to talk and afraid if he opens his mouth to say something nothing but a loud sob will come out. He opts to press a kiss to his son's temple instead and is happy and relieved when Rory doesn't pull away and seems to be fine with it.

They stay embraced like that for five minutes until Rory speaks up again “Is Harry okay?”

“Wha-?” Niall lifts his head and turns it to find Harry. He's still standing in the doorway, only now with a tissue pressed to his eyes trying to stop the flow of tears.

“I'm fine! I'm fine! Don't let me ruin the moment,” Harry waves a hand in the general direction of Niall and Rory.

“Oh my God. Get over here before you have me crying too,” Niall laughs and holds out an arm for his husband.

Harry practically skips to the couch, giggling and sniffling as he ducks under Niall's arm and kisses his neck “Sorry. Couldn't help it. You're both so cute. It was such a nice moment.”

Niall snorts out a laugh and Rory lifts his head up from where he's tucked under Niall's other arm “I bet you love all those cheesy rom-coms.”

“I do,” Harry giggles again and nods his head “And I make Niall watch them with me so...you're next. Be prepared. I've given you fair warning. There will be no complaining.”

“It's fine. I can handle it. Mam made me watch some ridiculous film from when she was a kid. 'The Notebook'. I got through it with a lot of eye rolling.” Rory says with a grin.

“I loved that movie,” Harry sighed “You'll be all sappy like that someday. When you meet the right woman. I'll be there to make fun of you by the way. Just saying.”

Both Rory and Niall laughed loudly at Harry, Harry just sitting there with a big smile on his face taking it all in. It seemed everything was okay again and Niall could feel his heart swell with pride because he was able to come up with the right words to help his son, and love, because the two people he loves most in the world were sitting right there, in his arms, joking and laughing with each other.

 

~~~

 

It was a month later when Niall got a call from Kaetlyn telling him she had a very bad morning and went to the hospital where her Doctor admitted her for IV fluids and pain medication. She was feeling a bit better now but they were keeping her overnight so she wanted to see if Niall would pick Rory up from school and bring him to stay with him and Harry for the night.

“Absolutely. Are you sure you're okay? Do you need anything?” Niall asked, concern in his voice.

“Yeah yeah, I'm fine. Meds are making me drowsy so I'll sleep all night. Just take care of Rory, yeah?”

“Yeah, of course I will. Hey- listen, I'm actually an hour away right now and probably won't get there in time. Are you well enough to call the school and give permission for Harry to pick him up?” Niall asks. Harry had just finished his tour a few days prior and Niall knew he was at home relaxing and watching Netflix.

“No need. I added Harry as his guardian as well, when I added your name so you could pick him up from school. Just send Rory a text so he knows who's picking him up. Actually- I'll do it because I want to let him know I'm fine and not to worry.” Kaetlyn says.

“Okay. I'll call Harry right away. He'll make sure to get Rory. Call us if you need anything.” Niall says. Kaetlyn agrees then they hang up and Niall calls Harry immediately.

“Hi baby. Miss you.” The sound of Harry's deep voice filled Niall's ear when his husband picked up the phone.

“Hi darlin'. I miss you too,” Niall smiles fondly “Can you do me a favour?”

“Sure love. What do you need?” Harry asks.

“Kaetlyn called. She was pretty sick this morning and went to the hospital. She's feeling better now but they're keeping her overnight. Can you get Rory from school?” Niall asks.

“Of course! Yeah. I'd love too.” Harry sounds a little more alert now, whereas before he sounded very relaxed and lazy. Niall can picture him sitting up in their bed after hearing what Niall wanted, hair stuck out everywhere and food probably stuck to his face. Niall really, really loved that man. “He's going to stay with us right? If she's in the hospital overnight? I'll bring him home to get whatever he needs. Is he okay do you think? Does he know?”

“He doesn't know yet. He's at school and it's not serious so she's just going to call and leave him a voicemail letting him know what's going on. She said she's just going to sleep all night because the medications make her drowsy.” Niall explains “I'm going to be heading home soon. Let me know if you guys need anything. Thanks for doing this, Harry. I love you.”

“Of course. I'd do anything for you, for both of you. I love you both. Drive safely okay? We'll be here when you get home. Love you, love you, love you.” Harry says quickly, making a kissing noise through the phone.

“Love you, too, you big idiot!” Niall laughs “See you soon.”

 

~~~

 

When Niall walks through the door a couple of hours later, the first sound he hears is loud laughter. He recognizes Harry and Rory's laughs right away and it warms his heart immediately. The last thing he wanted was for Rory to lose his Mum but he couldn't deny he could get used to hearing this when he gets home from work everyday.

“I'm home!” Niall calls out after he's hung his coat up in the coat closet.

“In the kitchen!” Harry calls out through his laughter.

Niall makes his way to the kitchen, a huge smile on his face when he walks in and sees his son sitting at the table and his husband chopping something up for dinner at the counter.

“What's so funny then?” Niall asks, walking up behind Harry to kiss his cheek.

“Harry was showing me his top ten spectacular falls on stage. They're on YouTube.” Rory explains, grinning at Niall. His cheeks were a nice rosy red from laughing and his hair was stuck up a bit in the front where he must have been running his fingers through it.

“Only ten? There's more. So much more.” Niall laughs, wrapping his arms around Harry from behind while he's chopping vegetables. He moves his head so he can look out around Harry and talk to Rory “Have you talked to your Mum?”

“Yeah,” Rory nodded “Harry took me to see her before I grabbed some clothes from home. It was brief. She was tired and resting so I didn't want to bother her.”

“Good, I'm glad you went to see her. Have you brought your stuff upstairs yet? All the times you've been here and we haven't picked a bedroom for you yet!” Niall exclaims.

“Not yet. Harry said I could pick whichever one I want. I guess it just feels a bit...strange? Like, I know it's stupid because you're my Dad and this is your house and everything...” Rory trails off.

“It's not stupid. Everyone feels a bit strange being in a house they don't know. I was a bit like that when I first visited Harry's Mum's house. I got used to it though and I knew she truly meant it when she told me to make myself at home. You'll get there too. This is your home now. It's just as much yours as it is ours.” Niall walked out from behind Harry and sat down at the table with his son “You can do whatever you want here. Well...except burn it down. I quite like this house so let's not do that.”

“I'll do my best,” Rory rolls his eyes, a small smile on his face.

“Are you doing school work?” Niall points at the books on the table.

“I am, yeah. Was taking a break to watch Harry fall on his arse. Do you do that here?” Rory turns to ask Harry “I feel like I'll need to walk around here with the camera always filming on my phone...just in case.”

“Oh shut up!” Harry tosses a piece of tomato at him “So much cheek between the two of you. Honestly!”

“You love it,” Niall laughs “Don't pretend you don't.”

“You shut up, too!” Harry says, this time a pea comes flying at Niall “Help your son with his school work. Or go do something else. I must cook in peace.”

“Has he always been this dramatic?” Rory asked Niall as he picked up one of his books to find a certain page “Should be in films, your Harry.”

“That's it!” Harry tried (and failed) to sound stern. In fact he so desperately was trying not to laugh “Get out of my kitchen!”

“Oh my God, he's waving knives around now,” Rory stood up from the table, laughing. He gathered his books and shoved them back in his bag “I'm going to the living room before he trips and accidentally stabs me.”

Niall stood in the middle of the kitchen, laughing hysterically as he watched his son leave the room. Harry was no better. He had dropped the knife by this point and was hiding his face in his arms as he stood bent over the counter laughing.

“Okay. Okay.” Niall wiped the tears off his face “That was good. That was so good.”

“I'm surrounded by cheeky Irishmen,” Harry says through his laughter “But I wouldn't have it any other way.”

“Yeah,” Niall smiled softly at Harry as his laughter died down “Neither would I, darlin'”

 

~~~

 

It's a week later when Rory stays over again. It's getting closer to Christmas and Harry and Niall asked if he wanted to come over and help them decorate the house and tree. He said yes, so they made a whole day of it on a Saturday and he stayed the night in the bedroom he picked out for himself on his previous visit.

Harry and Niall are sitting at the kitchen table the next morning, around nine, when Louis shows up, charging into the kitchen making as much noise as possible.

“Oi oi! Where are you, Narry? If your cocks are out, put them away. I don't need to see that!” Louis' voice rings through the house, loud and clear, like he was standing right next to them.

“God,” Harry groans “He can't even be quiet on a Sunday.”

“I heard that!” Louis snapped as he walked into the kitchen “Harold. Niall. I need tea.”

“You know where the kettle is,” Niall says dryly.

“I'm your guest, Horan. I'm not supposed to make my own tea!” Louis looked at Niall with narrowed eyes, yet all the while he's walking towards the kettle to make his own tea.

“You're not a guest if you invite yourself in.” Niall points out. Louis simply sticks his tongue out at Niall, like the mature almost thirty-two year old that he is.

“What are you doing here?” Harry asked “Especially just before nine on a Sunday morning?”

“What am I doing here,” Louis grumbles under his breath “I'll tell you what I'm doing here. I had sex last night!”

“Good for you, mate,” Niall snorts “You couldn't have texted us that? If you really wanted us to know so bad.”

“Oh shut up!” Louis glared at Niall, his voice rising in pitch as he banged around the kitchen getting a cup and a spoon. “You didn't let me finish. We went to her place, everything was great, then I woke up this morning, rolled over and-”

“Discovered you were so drunk last night and 'she' was really a 'he'?” Niall says. He can't help himself. He lives to goad Louis. It worked.

“No!!!” Louis shrieked “For fucks sake, Niall. I rolled over and came face to face with a picture of her and her husband on the bedside table!”

“Ouch,” Harry winced “Sorry, Lou. I know how you feel about that kind of thing.”

“Yeah,” Louis smacks his hand down onto the counter “If people want to cheat on their spouses then that's their business but don't drag me into it. That's all I fucking ask.”

Harry opens up his mouth to reply but stops when they hear a thump on the stairs then thirty seconds later, Rory is walking into the kitchen wearing nothing but a pair of boxer shorts, his hair stuck up in five different directions and his fists rubbing at his eyes to try and wake himself up.

“Is there a fire?” He asks, his eyes squinted against the sunlight coming in through the windows.

“What?” Niall furrows his brows and sniffs the air for smoke “No? Why would you think that?”

“Huh.” Rory huffed thoughtfully, his hand coming up to cover his mouth when he yawns “I was asleep. I woke up to loud shrieking. I thought it was the firm alarm or something.”

“Oh Jesus!” Niall spits out his tea and starts laughing loudly. Not only because of what his son just said, but because of the look on Louis' face when he said it.

“No,” Harry's laughing too, barely keeping it together enough to talk “The shrieking you heard was Louis.”

“What?” Rory looked confused. He turned toward Louis with squinted eyes, only now realizing there was a third person in the room “Oh.”

“I think- I think we told you Louis is my manager and a good mate?” Harry was shaking with laughter at this point, unable to hold onto his tea cup anymore without spilling tea out everywhere. The shaking only becomes worse when Louis makes a noise like he's dying over in the corner.

“Right. Yes. You did.” Rory confirmed tiredly He turns to Louis“Nice to meet ya mate, but it's Sunday and I don't have school on Sunday so I'd like to sleep in. Maybe you could use your indoor voice or something?”

“Oh holy fucking Christ!” Niall guffaws “Harry! Harry, his face! Look at his face!” Niall points to Louis who looks completely gobsmacked.

“I can't! I can't!” Harry wails, banging his fist against the table. At this point he's laughing so hard he can barely catch his breath.

Rory, in the meantime, still seems to be in zombie mode and simply shrugs his shoulders and turns around to head back upstairs, presumably to sleep.

“What the fuck?” Louis says in a surprisingly calm voice “What the actual fuck?”

Niall leans back in his chair, his hand over his face, trying to control his laughter “That was Rory. My son.”

“Yes, I'm aware of who Rory is, even though I haven't had the pleasure of meeting him until today.” Louis rolls his eyes “Your spawn just sassed me, Niall James. Sassed me. The sassmaster. What the fuck just happened? I don't even know!”

“He says what he's thinking. Kind of like someone else I know.” Niall gives Louis a pointed look. “Never would have thought to compare you to a fire alarm though. Must have given him quite a start when he woke up. All that shrieking.”

“That's-” Louis cuts himself off, tilting his head to the side thoughtfully “Actually, can I borrow him? I know a few people who need to be taken down a peg. He can be my sidekick.”

“No,” Niall scowls “He's my son. Not your toy.”

Louis' expression turned soft, a genuine smile taking over his face “Yeah. He is your son. It's incredible. I've known about him for awhile but I guess it just never completely sunk in until just now when I saw him.”

“Yeah,” Niall looked down at his hands, shaking his head as if he couldn't believe Rory was actually his son “He's amazing, Louis. He's everything a man could ever ask for in a son. I'm so proud of him.”

“He's got a lot of you in him, I hear.” Louis says, folding his arms over his chest and leaning back against the counter “Your besotted husband talks my ear off about him. If I didn't know better, I'd think Harry was the proud papa.”

“That's because I am!” Harry smiles wide “Maybe he doesn't have my DNA but I love him. I see Niall in him every time I look at him. I couldn't love him anymore if he were my own kid.”

“God,” Louis makes a face “The longer you two are together, the more sickening you two get. I haven't even drank my tea yet and I feel like a cup of sugar has been poured in it.”

“Get it all out now, Lou, because just you wait- when you finally fall in love and get married, we'll be taking the piss out of you all day long.” Niall promised with a grin.

Louis scoffed “I don't do happily ever after.”

“We'll see, Louis, we'll see.”

~~~

 

“Hey Ni?” Harry called to his husband a couple nights later when he walked into their bedroom.

“Yeah darlin'?” Niall stuck his head out of the en suite, wiping his face with a towel.

“I think we should talk,” Harry says as he slips out of his jeans and shirt. He leaves them on the floor to put in the hamper in the morning and climbs into their bed in his boxers, fluffing his pillows up behind him.

“That sounds ominous. I don't like that,” Niall tosses his towel onto the counter in the en suite and enters the bedroom with a frown on his face.

“What?” Harry looks confused for a minute “Oh! No it's nothing bad.”

“Okay,” Niall climbed into bed next to Harry, turning to face him “What's up?”

“I just wondered what you wanted to do for Christmas? It's our first Christmas with Rory but it's also his last Christmas with his Mum and...I just thought we could try to make it as special as we can for him?” Harry said.

Niall nodded and pushed himself closer to the middle of the bed, pressing his body up against Harry's “I don't know. I've missed a bunch of Holidays, so obviously I want to spend it with him but I'll have the rest of my life with him, this is Kaetlyn's last Christmas with her son. If she wants to spend it alone with him, I'm not going to fight it.”

“Yeah, of course, I understand that. I was thinking we could give her another option though? We could talk to both of them and ask what they want. I'm hoping- what do you think about Kaetlyn and Rory spending Christmas here? We have plenty of room. They could come Christmas Eve and stay through Boxing Day. I mean- if she wants to spend her last Christmas alone with Rory that's fine but I think it would mean so much to Rory to spend a Christmas with both his parents, ya know? Especially when he's older and has kids of his own, he can look back on this Christmas and remember being with his Mum and Dad. I want that for him. I want that for you. I love you both so much.”

“Harry...Jesus Christ,” Niall laughs at himself as he reaches up to wipe tears from his eyes “You're amazing you know? So, so special. Your heart is so full of love and kindness and it just never ceases to amaze me how quickly and whole heartedly you accepted my son. You're so good to him. I'm so lucky to have your support through all of this. So lucky.”

“Of course you have my support. You'll always have my support. You're my husband and I love you but you're also my best friend you know? You're everything.” Harry says, leaning in and wrapping his body around Niall's, holding him close and hopefully showing Niall how he feels when he kisses him.

“Thank you,” Niall breathes out when the kiss ends “Not everyone would be as understanding as you have been. We had plans. I took a leave of absence to be on tour with you and I missed the European leg. We talked about adopting next year and what if the agency calls to let us know they have someone interested in our profile? We haven't talked about that yet, what we're going to do. So many things are up in the air and you could have been angry about that but you weren't, you aren't, and I just love you so much for that. This could have easily come between us, H.”

“I don't think so. You and I, we've been through a lot, Niall. We've gone to hell and back in the past and we survived it. I think because of that, we're much more careful not to take each other for granted. We love and respect each other, we want only the best for each other and I feel like, no matter what happens, we'll see each other through it because no matter what, the love we have for each other will never disappear. All those things you mentioned, missing part of the tour, the adoption process- that's not going to hurt us. We had all summer on tour together and whether we adopt next year or five years from now, it doesn't matter. We'll get there someday.” Harry assures Niall.

“I know,” Niall nods his head, swallowing “You're right. We're strong. Our marriage is strong. We can get through anything together.”

“Exactly. A fifteen year old son wasn't what we were expecting. It was really shocking but it's been good, hasn't it? Having Rory in our lives? He's only fifteen but he's so mature, so strong, so amazing. He's happy and so full of life, he's kind, funny, witty, smart, he's just amazing and now that we have him, I can't imagine our life without him.” Harry says honestly, his hands absentmindedly running over Niall's back, his arm, his hip.

“Neither can I,” Niall answers back, tucking his face against Harry's neck and breathing him in.

They eventually fall asleep like that, not waking up until the morning.

 

~~~

 

Niall and Harry talked to Kaetlyn the next day and she agreed to stay at their house for Christmas. She wanted to make it a good one for Rory and couldn't think of a better way to do it then to have him spend it with his new family. His new family including his grandparents and uncle.

At first, Niall wasn't sure if it would be a good idea or not, having Bobby and Greg come from Ireland for Christmas and his Mum and her husband from their home in England. They desperately wanted to meet their grandson, Anne, Robin and Gemma did as well, but Niall didn't want him to be overwhelmed by it all.

Harry is the one who suggested Niall should just ask Rory what he wanted. He's mature for his age and more than capable of making the decision for himself. So Niall asked him and Rory said he'd love to meet his grandparents and Harry's parents. Its always been just he and his Mum for Christmas and he's always wondered what it would be like to have a big family, especially around the Holidays.

“Have we figured out the sleeping arrangements for tonight?” Harry asked Niall on the morning of Christmas Eve. Their families would be there by late afternoon at the latest and he wanted to have everything ready so they would be as comfortable as possible.

“Yeah. Theo will stay in the bedroom that's going to be the nursery, Kaetlyn is going to stay in Rory's room, the other three guest rooms will go to Robin and Anne, Mum and Chris, and Denise and Greg. Rory said he's perfectly fine on one of the pull out couches in the game room and I know Bobby will take the other pull out couch. Your sister lives in London so she's just going home to her own place anyway so, it's all set.” Niall tells Harry, coming up behind him in the kitchen and squeezing his arse gently before kissing the back of his neck.

“Bit handsy this morning aren't you?” Harry says, grinning from ear to ear.

“Can't help it. Was just remembering what I was doing to this arse of yours this morning. Can't help but want my hands on it all the time.” Niall moves his hands up to grip at Harry's hips, his lips grazing the back of Harry's neck “I love you.”

Harry spins around in Niall's arms, pressing their bodies together and kissing him thoroughly “I love you, too.”

“Good,” Niall smiles lazily at his husband “Oh, I stocked the bathrooms with extra towels for everyone, the beds all have clean sheets, our kitchen is full to capacity with food. I think we're all set.”

“I think so, too. Do you want me to go with you to pick up your Dad and Brother from the airport?” Harry asks.

“No. You stay here in case anyone gets here early. Rory and Kaetlyn should be here soon.” Niall says.

“Alright. You better get going then. Plane is landing soon.” Harry glances at the clock.

“Okay. See you in a bit. Love you,” Niall kisses Harry quickly then heads to the door, grabbing his jacket and picking up his keys on the way out.

Two hours later, Niall came through the door followed by Bobby, who was laughing loudly, and Greg, his wife, and their son. Kaetlyn was upstairs resting but Rory was there with Harry to greet them all, Harry with a big smile on his face, Rory with a shy one.

Well,” Bobby puts his suitcase down onto the floor and looks at Rory with bright eyes “If this isn't a sight!” Bobby steps forward and holds his hand out to Rory “I'm your Grandpa, Rory, but call me Bobby. Everyone does.”

“Hello,” Rory gives Bobby's hand a firm shake and Niall can tell immediately that his Dad is impressed “It's nice to meet you.”

“Just look at ya. Look just like Niall did at fifteen, doesn't he Greg? Amazing Just amazing” Bobby shakes his head, the smile never leaving his face “Do you like fishing?”

Niall groaned and turned his head to rest his forehead on Harry's bicep, Greg cackling in the background.

“I do, yeah,” Rory confirms, and God help him now.

“Well! You can come back to Ireland in the summer, when school is out and we'll go fishing. Niall will come too, and Greg. Harry comes as well but he isn't allowed near the water lest he fall in.” Bobby says to his grandson.

“Hey!” Harry squawks “That was one time and it wasn't even my fault!”

“Keep believing that, son,” Bobby shakes his head “Come here. Give me a hug. I missed ya.”

Harry rolls his eyes but steps forward to hug Bobby, while Greg, his wife and son say hello to Rory. Theo is only three years younger than Rory so he thinks the two cousins will probably get along pretty well.

Once everybody has hugged each other and said hello, they move into the kitchen for lunch, Niall's Dad shouting that there better be whiskey and Harry snorting, saying of course there's whiskey, Niall lives here doesn't he?

Niall stays behind everyone with Rory, wanting to make sure he was okay and not too overwhelmed.

“You worry too much,” Rory laughs “I'm fine. You forget I like meeting people. Your Dad seems cool.”

“Don't tell him that please,” Niall groans “He'll be insufferable.”

“Alright,” Rory laughs “Come on then. Harry was making food when I got here and I'm starving.”

They walked into the kitchen to find everyone milling about, laughing and chatting with each other as they help themselves to the food all around them. Harry made a huge pot of chili and the table in the large dining room off the kitchen, was full of trays of sandwiches, fruit platters, cheese and crackers, and there were several bottles of wine for those who wanted it. It might be all a bit much to some people, but Harry and Niall loved it. Loved having their friends and family around and being able to take care of them.

“Do you want some chili, Rory?” Harry asks as he fills a bowl and hands it to Niall.

“Is that a serious question?” Rory asks, looking at Harry with blinking eyes.

“Yeah, I don't even know why I asked that. You're like Niall, you'll eat anything.” Harry shakes his head fondly, then dishes up another bowl and passes it to Rory.

“Not true,” Rory says after swallowing his first bite of chili “I'm quite confidant I am never trying caviar or escargot. French food in general, really. No thank you. This is really good, Harry. Thank you.”

Eventually, everyone has settled in with their food and Bobby sits back in his chair with his whiskey, smiling at his grandson “So...tell us something about yourself, Rory. Niall says you love football and you're very good at it but is there anything else you like doing?”

“Sure,” Rory shrugged a shoulder and drank from his water glass before continuing “I pretty much like anything athletic. I just like to be moving, I guess. I like video games as much as anyone my age does but I like books too.”

“Books?” Denise encourages him to continue.

“Yeah. I like to read. Like, actual books. Not tablets with books on them. I like picking up an old book and thumbing through the old, worn pages, looking at what someone else may have written in the margins but I also like new books just as much. The smell of a new book is one of my favourite smells I think. I'm not saying I don't like technology or anything. Just, if I'm reading a book I'd rather have it physically in my hands.”

“I can agree with you there,” Bobby snorted “I tried to use one of those tablets for reading one time. Every time I touched the screen, it kept zooming in and the words became bigger than me head. It was ridiculous. Kept having to call Niall so he could tell me how to undo whatever I did.”

“So does this mean Literature is your favourite subject in school?” Denise asks.

“Yeah,” Rory nodded “I take the advanced placement course in Literature in school. We read some pretty interesting novels. I like it.”

“I'm not surprised you're a smart lad,” Bobby says, a proud look taking over his face “Both my boys are smart. A lot smarter than me.”

“You're plenty smart, Da,” Niall rolls his eyes.

“Shut up and let me be proud of me sons and grandson,” Bobby says, picking up a dinner roll and tossing it at Niall, hitting him in the shoulder.

“That's abuse!” Niall yells “And also a waste of good food. Don't you dare start any food fights, Bobby.”

“Me?” Bobby points a finger at his own chest “Excuse me but wasn't it your husband that started the food fight two years ago? I seem to recall him being really pissed off at you and deciding to throw some mash at you with his fork. I was merely joining in.”

“I remember that,” Harry was laughing “I don't remember why I was mad at Niall though.”

“You lost your damn mind and was convinced one of my co-workers was out to seduce me. You got mad because I wouldn't believe you.” Niall laughed as he remembered that night, right here in this house.

“Oh my God,” Greg guffaws “Why was I never told about this?”

“I don't know but if I knew how to work those fancy smart phones I would have recorded it for ya.” Bobby tells him.

“No you wouldn't have! You were too busy flinging mash off your fork like a fucking child,” Niall scoffs “Then Harry tried to send you to your room.”

“That's true! I almost forgot that!” Bobby bangs his hand on the table a few times, laughing “He actually told me to go to my room as if I was his child and he was trying to ground me.”

“Because you were acting like a child!” Harry says indignantly.

“I'm not the one who thought some straight fella was trying to seduce Niall. I never did get the whole story there. Whatever happened with that?” Bobby asked.

“You don't want to know,” Harry shakes his head, his long curls brushing against his shoulders.

“I do!” Rory sits between Bobby and Theo, a huge, shit eating grin on his face.

“Oh I like this child. He's definitely a Horan,” Greg nods his head, his eyes bright and his own smile stretching across his face.

“Well?” Rory arches an eyebrow at Niall and Harry.

“How about we tell you later?” Harry concedes, which only makes Bobby and Greg protest loudly. They're so loud, nobody hears Gemma arrive and walk into the kitchen.

“Well. If it isn't all the Horan's together in one room. Now this is a party I want to be a part of.” Gemma stood with her hands on her hips, a huge smile on her face and a twinkle in her eye.

“Aye,” Bobby stands up to greet her “Young Gemma. Now this is a lass that can knock back the whiskey.”

“It's a talent of mine,” Gemma laughs and throws her arms around Bobby in a hug. She moves on to everyone else, hugging and kissing cheeks, until she gets to Rory “You must be Rory.” She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, not wanting to overstep and hug him like she did everyone else “Welcome to the family. It's really good to meet you.”

Rory smiled up at her, telling her it was nice to meet her too, then everyone went back to eating, Gemma puttering around and picking out food for herself.

Some time later, Rory and Theo disappeared to the game room to play FIFA, while everyone else went into the living room, some with tea or coffee, others sticking with wine. Niall cradles his own cup of tea in both hands, sitting down on Harry's lap and cuddling in close to enjoy the conversation in the room between so many people he loved.

“Your boy is somethin' else, lad,” Bobby said to Niall “Cheeky little bugger. Definitely belongs in this family. I'm happy for you, son. He's a good boy. You and Harry will be good parents to him. Already are.”

“Thanks Da. I'm gonna do my best. I love him so much already. Didn't know I could love anybody else as much as I love Harry but I do. It's a different love but just as strong.” Niall said softly, his head resting back on Harry's shoulder.

“He loves you, too, ya know,” Kaetlyn shuffled into the room, her jumper swallowing her and her skin pale. She was definitely getting worse and Niall was losing sleep, waiting for the day she would die and he'd have to be strong for his son. Get him through losing the only parent he's ever known.

“Hello,” Denise smiled over at Kaetlyn “Would you like some tea? I was about to go get another cup for myself anyway. I could bring you one as well.”

“Sure,” Kaetlyn nodded “Thank you.”

Bobby stood up from the couch, reaching out to shake Kaetlyn's hand and giving her his spot to sit down. She smiled gratefully at him and sat down next to Harry on the couch, tucking her legs underneath her.

“We were just talking about what a good lad you've raised,” Bobby told her. “He's wonderful. Very smart and charming. Cheeky like Niall. There was a moment when we were eating in there, he said something, and I had to do a double take because me mind kept bringing me back to Niall at that age, sittin' at the table, his head ducked down just the way Rory does. Almost forgot where I was for a second.”

“Oh, Bobby, going senile already are we?” Harry quipped, the smirk on his face pretty evident, even though he had to peek out from behind Niall for everyone to see him.

“Watch it you!” Bobby pointed a finger at Harry, a smile twitching at the corner of his lips “Don't think having me son on your lap is going to save you. I'll get you eventually.”

“A car just pulled up,” Gemma said as she wandered back into the room “Think it's Maura and Chris.”

“Oh!” Niall jumped up off Harry's lap, Harry right behind him to greet their latest guests.

They spent five minutes out in the entryway while Maura fussed over both her boys, hugging them and kissing them several times while her husband rolled his eyes fondly and slipped passed them to head into the living room to greet everyone else.

“Is he here?” Maura whispered to Niall “My grandson?”

“Yes, Ma. Both your grandsons are here. They're playing Fifa downstairs.” Niall wrapped an arm around his mother as they walked into the living room.

“Oh, both my grandsons in the same place. This is the best Christmas already. I couldn't ask for more. I don't want any gifts, just my grandchildren.” Maura was getting weepy already and Niall swallowed thickly, a bit nervous it might make Rory uncomfortable.

When they walked into the living room, Rory and Theo were already there, someone having gone to get them when Maura and Chris arrived. It looked like he'd already met Chris and now his eyes moved over to Maura, Niall and Harry as they walked into the room.

Niall opened his mouth to do the introductions but Theo apparently had other ideas.

“That's Granny,” He said to Rory, motioning toward Maura “She cooks a lot of good food, gives lots of presents and never takes Da's side over mine. It's brilliant really.”

The whole room burst into laughter, even Greg who tried but failed to keep a scowl on his face. Bobby, of course, was laughing the loudest and at this point Niall didn't know if it was because of his cheeky grandson or too much whiskey.

“Hello,” Rory stepped forward to greet his grandmother “I'm happy to meet you.”

“Oh!” Maura held a hand to her mouth, trying to keep herself from crying too much “Me too, love. So, so happy to meet you.” She raised her arms as if to hug him, then quickly put them back down, clearly not wanting to get ahead of herself. She was still a stranger to him after all.

“It's okay,” Rory smiled at her “I like hugs.”

Good thing he did, too, because Maura flung herself at him, crushing him in her arms and sobbing against his shoulder. Rory, to Niall's surprise, didn't look uncomfortable. He just laughed and hugged her back, perhaps somehow sensing she needed this.

“You're so tiny,” Rory said to her, wonder in his voice. Maura was pretty short. She barely came up to his shoulders “Doesn't really fit with the stories I've heard about you.”

“Bobby Horan, what have you been filling this child's head with?” Maura stepped out of Rory's arms to glare at her ex husband.

“Me?” Bobby's eyes widened and he looked truly affronted “I haven't told him anything!”

“He really didn't” Rory grinned “It was Harry.”

“Harry!” Maura gasped “What have you been saying about me?”

“That you're fierce and a force to be reckoned with so never piss you off.” Harry answered, his hands held up in defence.

“Oh,” Maura nodded “Well that's all true, Rory. I may be tiny but I can take anyone on in this room.”

“I'm starting to see that now,” Rory laughed.

“Are you hungry, Ma?” Niall asked “There's plenty of food in the kitchen. Help yourselves.”

“I think we will,” Maura nodded “We haven't had anything since breakfast this morning.” She turned to look at Rory again, one arm still around her grandson “Will you come have a chat with your Grandmum later? I'd love to get to know you.”

“Mhmm,” Rory hummed “I can come sit with you while you have lunch if you like?”

“Really?” Maura looked taken aback but very pleased by the fact that Rory was so laid back and at ease “You're so sweet. Theo will you come, too? I missed you. It's so good to see you.”

“Yeah, okay Granny, “Theo agreed easily, then they made their way to the kitchen, Maura in the middle, with arms around both her Grandsons.

“Alright! Maura has confiscated her Grandsons. She probably won't let them go for fifty years,” Harry says cheerfully “Does anyone need more tea, coffee, wine?”

Everyone shakes their heads, telling Harry they're fine for now, so Harry turns to go make sure Maura has everything she needs in the kitchen but he's stopped by Gemma.

“Ah ah ah, get back here,” Gemma called to her brother “You're standing under the mistletoe. Get to smooching.”

Harry looked up at the entryway to the living room and sure enough there is indeed mistletoe up there. He snorted and rolled his eyes at his sister, while snaking a hand around Niall's waist and pulling him close “As if I need an excuse to kiss my husband.”

A little giggle escapes Niall's lips, right before Harry ducks his head and presses his lips against his husbands. He could feel Niall's body lean in against his and his calloused fingers pressing into the skin right above the waistband of Harry's jeans.

It never got old, kissing Niall. The feel of Niall's lips against his, the touch of his hands all over his skin, the way he smelled, the way he tasted- it always feels like the first time they kissed, to Harry. He was so in love with Niall, he couldn't imagine never feeling this way when they kissed.

When Niall's tongue slipped past Harry's lips and gently brushed against his, Harry sighed softly and held Niall even closer, ignoring the catcalls coming from their family members spread out across the room.

“Jesus! When I said get to smooching, I didn't say to suck each others faces off,” Gemma yelled at them, laughter in her voice.

“You've done it now, Gem. When these two get started you can't break them apart. I don't know how they manage when Harry's on tour.” Bobby chimed in with his two cents.

“Skype sex,” Gemma cackled and Harry and Niall broke apart, bursting out laughing when Greg and Bobby started groaning about sharing way too much information.

“Have we walked in on another snog session then?” Harry's Mum came through the door, a huge smile on her face. She looked up when Bobby pointed to the ceiling and laughed when she saw the mistletoe. Before Harry or Niall could react, she was grabbing the both of them and kissing their cheeks repeatedly.

“Mum!!” Harry whined, wriggling to try and get away from his Mother “Okay, okay! I think that's enough now.”

“It's never enough, darling” Anne protests but lets him go and happily attaches herself to Niall who doesn't seem to mind one bit. Someone in the room immediately starts humming Harry's song 'Never Enough' which starts Gemma and Denise singing and Harry's sure a half pissed Bobby is going to get up and start dancing.

“What have I walked in on?” Rory walks in, a piece of cheese in his hand.

“Harry and Niall were snogging and it somehow ended up in my wife and Gemma singing one of Harry's song,” Greg rolls his eyes and takes a sip of his whiskey.

“Do you ever not snog?” Rory asked Niall and Harry “I walked into the kitchen last week and made a sandwich for myself while they were snogging up against the counter. They never knew I was there the whole time. I think next time I'm going to swipe Harry's credit card and buy myself a car. Something flashy. Oh, I know. I'll get a neon green Lamborghini. They'll still be snogging when I get back. They won't know anything until I come crashing through the gate out there and knock over Harry's plants.”

“Oh my God I can't!” Greg waves a hand around in the air toward Rory while bending over in his chair and laughing “It's like I'm eighteen again and Niall's antagonizing our neighbour with his cheeky attitude.”

“Oh right! I thought for sure he'd punch Niall in the face at some point.” Bobby says, a gleeful smile on his face as he apparently remembers Niall's antagonizing ways.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. I may not have been a parent for very long but I'm pretty sure this is the part where I tell Rory he's grounded for ten years if he ever does something like that.” Niall looks at his son through narrowed eyes.

“It was just an example of things I could get away with while you're snogging each others faces off. I'd never actually have to do that because I know Harry well enough now to know he'd be so on board for a neon green Lamborghini.” Rory says matter of fact.

“He's not wrong,” Harry agrees, while everyone in the room laughs loudly.

“This lovely young man must be Rory,” Anne finally gets a word in.

“I am,” Rory smiles kindly at her “And you're Harry's Mum? I recognize you from the photos around the house.”

“I am!” Anne places a hand on his shoulder and squeezes gently “Call me Anne, darling. It's so wonderful to meet you. Look just like your Dad. Just as handsome, too. I bet Maura is absolutely delighted to have you here.”

“My Mum is obsessed with Niall,” Harry tells Rory “She'll probably be obsessed with you now, too.”

“Of course I'm obsessed with Niall,” Anne wraps her arms around Niall's waist and pulls him to her side “He's a good man and he's made my baby extremely happy.”

Harry can't help but duck his head and smile at the comment. She was right of course. Harry was extremely happy. Every morning when he woke up, if Niall was still asleep, he'd just lay there and stare at him, taking in every inch of his face as if he was never going to see him again. The feeling of love that filled his heart was so great that sometimes, he had to take a moment to stop and just breathe before he becomes overwhelmed by it all.

“There he goes, blushing again,” Gemma coos “Such a sap he is.”

“Alright, alright,” Niall laughs “Anne, Robin. Mum and Chris are in the kitchen having a late lunch. You're welcome to join them. There's plenty of food.”

They thank Niall and head off to the kitchen, Rory going with them, back to Maura and Theo, while Harry and Niall take their seats again to continue chatting with Greg, Denise, Bobby, Gemma and Kaetlyn.

“I love you,” Harry murmurs close to Niall's ear, cuddling in to Niall's side “My Mum is right. You do make me extremely happy.

Niall smiles and rests a hand on Harry's thigh, squeezing gently “So do you, darlin'. Love you.”

 

~~~

 

The family spent the rest of Christmas Eve tucked away in Harry and Niall's house. There was plenty of food, wine and other liquor and eventually, when it got dark outside, the Christmas tree was lit up and the music was turned on, prompting some of the more tipsy people in the house to start a sing-a-long. Eventually Niall and Harry even got their guitars out and started taking requests.

By nine, the Styles family had the scrabble board out and Rory got to see first hand how competitive the Styles siblings could be. Robin never got involved in it unless it was just the four of them and he teamed up with Anne against her children, so there was an open spot where Niall would usually play with Harry against Gemma and Anne but this time, Harry asked Rory if he wanted to play. He agreed, and soon everyone was gathered around watching the four of them go at it.

Unfortunately for Gemma and Anne, Rory and Kaetlyn neglected to mention Rory is very good at scrabble.

“Oh for fucks sake!” Gemma throws her hands up in the air after Harry and Rory score a triple word score “Niall! You should have mentioned your child is a fucking genius.”

Niall laughed and shook his head from where he was sitting next to Kaetlyn on the couch “I had no idea he was.”

“He's technically not,” Kaetlyn says “His IQ is above average but not in genius range. He's just really smart and spelling has always been a strong area for him.”

“Obviously I'm fine if you want to refer to me as a genius though.” Rory tells Gemma from across the coffee table, a huge smirk on his face.

Gemma groaned and fell against her Mother who was laughing along with everyone else “You got lucky this time, H. I'll get you both back. Mark my words!”

After that, there were a few more games brought out and people spread out into different rooms to play. Rory and Theo went back to video games downstairs and before they all knew it, it was after midnight and officially Christmas Day.

Everyone gathered together in the living room again, sharing hugs and kisses, wishing each other a Happy Christmas before Gemma headed home and everyone else started to head upstairs for bed. Before anyone could go anywhere though, Kaetlyn surprised them all by asking if they could give her a minute of their time.

“I don't know how long Rory and Theo will be downstairs so I'll be quick,” She spoke in a low voice, not wanting Rory to hear her if he should come up “I want to thank you all for making this a great Christmas for my son and me as well. Obviously what I did to Niall was pretty horrible so you didn't have to treat me as well as you have today. The fact that you have treated me with kindness just goes to show the character of each and every one of you and it only serves to ease my mind even more, that Rory will be in good hands.”

“Niall and Harry...they're going to be great parents. The best parents. My son is so lucky to have them but I'm seeing tonight that he has so much more than that. He has grandparents in Bobby and Maura, surrogate grandparents in Robin, Anne, and Chris, aunts in Gemma and Denise and an uncle in Greg. He has a lot of people to count on now and I thank you all so much. It's- I think it'll be time for me to go soon and it'll be tough but you'll see him through. I can be at peace knowing that.”

Maura and Anne were openly crying by the time Kaetlyn finished speaking, Harry was clinging to Niall and very close to crying and everyone else simply stood quietly, there heads bowed a little as they really absorbed everything Kaetlyn had to say.

“We'll take care of him. Don't you worry,” Bobby says gruffly “He'll be the most loved boy in the world.”

“Absolutely,” Maura said through her tears “Anything he needs, anything Niall and Harry need, we'll be there. All of us. He'll have a good life. I promise you that.”

Kaetlyn nodded her head and wiped the tears from her cheeks, taking deep breaths to calm herself “Thank you. Now that I've said what I needed to say, lets move on and enjoy the rest of Christmas. I don't want to bring anyone down. I think I'll say goodnight now actually and I'll see you all tomorrow.”

The room is quiet for awhile after that, nobody saying a word, just sitting or standing quietly. Eventually, Bobby breaks the silence by blowing out a long breath and standing up saying he's going to get ready for bed.

That seems to spring everyone else into action and Niall goes to get all the blankets and pillows the boys will need for the sofa beds downstairs. Theo decided he wanted to sleep down there with his cool older cousin so Bobby said he'd be fine sleeping in the bedroom next to the master.

It's an hour later when Niall is sitting up in bed with the telly on low and Harry is in the en suite brushing his teeth, that there's a knock on the door. Niall mutes the telly and climbs out of bed in his flannel pajama bottoms to answer the door and is surprised to find Rory standing there.

“Hey,” Niall keeps his voice low, mindful of his Father in the next room “Alright? Do you need some more pillows or blankets?”

Rory doesn't answer, just flings his body at Niall, hugging him tight and nearly knocking them both over. They stumble a few feet into the room but Niall is able to stop them from tipping over and quickly wraps his son up in his arms, holding him close and kissing the side of his head repeatedly

“It's okay. I've got you. Whatever it is, we'll figure it out,” Niall tells his son in a gentle voice. Rory doesn't appear to be crying but he's breathing heavy against Niall's neck and Niall could feel him trembling slightly against him.

Niall's not sure how much time passes. He hears Harry come out of the en suite, heard him pause for a moment as he took in Niall and Rory, then feels him as he steps up behind him and places a reassuring hand on Niall's lower back. He doesn't say anything, just supports Niall silently, waiting for Father and Son to separate to find out what's going on.

“Hey,” Niall eventually whispers in his sons ear “Can you tell me what's wrong? Can you talk to me?”

“Sorry,” Rory says, stepping back from Niall slightly “You were probably in bed and I-”

“No, we were both awake. I was watching telly and Harry was in the bathroom. Don't apologize for knocking on our door. You're always welcome to knock. I will always be available to you.” Niall assures his son, holding his face in both hands to ensure he was looking at him and understanding him.

“Would you like me to leave you alone for a bit?” Harry asks before Rory can say anything else.

“No, don't do that. Stay please.” Rory says quietly, his eyes flitting behind Niall to look at Harry.

“Let's go sit down, yeah?” Niall waves toward the bed “We'll get comfortable and you can talk to us about whatever you want.”

Rory nods and lets Niall lead him over to the bed with a hand on his back, nudging him onto the bed and waiting for him to be situated with his back resting against the headboard before he climbs on next to him on one side, Harry on the other.

“Do you want to watch telly for a while? Nothing but Christmas programs on right now but that'll work to keep your mind off whatever is bothering you. We don't have to talk about it right now. We can just keep you company if you like.” Niall stops there, not wanting to end up a rambling mess in front of his son.

“No, it's fine. I just- needed to see you I guess.” Rory says, looking down at his lap.

“Yeah?” Niall says, then decides to slip some humour into the conversation to help relax Rory “And how do I look?”

Rory lifted his head, a laugh escaping his lips as he turns to look at Niall “You're a dork.”

Niall gasps and puts a hand over his heart “And I'm not even wearing my glasses. Did you hear that Harold? I'm a dork.”

“I did hear that.” Harry giggled “He's right though. Sometimes you're a dork but you're my dork.”

“You're both dorks. Living in Holy Matrimony,” Rory snorts, sending Niall and Harry into a fit of giggles.

They stopped giggling after a minute and Niall slid an arm around Rory's shoulders, his fingers brushing against Harry's arm in the process. He took the opportunity to brush his knuckles over Harry's bicep a few times, a source of comfort to Harry and himself really, because he didn't know what his son was going to say and if he was going to be able to help him. He has no experience as a parent, only three months worth, and he's always afraid in the back of his mind that he won't be good enough, won't give the right advice or know what to do in certain situations.

He felt Harry's hand come up and grip his fingers, squeezing gently and when Harry looked over at him he could see everything Harry wanted to say in his eyes. You're okay. You can do this. I'm here with you. I love you. Niall shared a small smile with him then looked back down at Rory who had slumped down a little bit and stretched his long legs out in front of him.

“I was laying in bed downstairs, a big smile on my face, thinking about today and how much fun I had. Everyone was so great. Your family-my family, were just so friendly and funny. I even noticed how nice they were to Mam and they didn't have to do that. I know what Mam did was wrong and I was really angry at her so I knew they had a right to be angry as well but if they were, they didn't show it and I know it meant a lot to her.” Rory began speaking again, his voice low and his accent a bit thicker because he was tired.

“They're all good people. They don't judge. They don't pry. Whatever goes on between me and your Mum, they won't get involved in that. For them, you're the focus. They love you and want to get to know you. Bobby has at least ten years of fishing trips to make up for and Mum has fifteen years worth of spoiling to do.” Niall and Harry both laughed.

“I know. I really like Bobby. Granny too. She told me I could call her Granny like Theo does. I like them both a lot and I really wouldn't mind going home to Ireland over the Summer to hang with Bobby. My other Grandfather died when I was five so I've never really had that before. Is that okay?” Rory turns his head to look up at Niall “If I go visit Bobby for a bit?”

“Absolutely,” Niall grins wide “Bobby will be beside himself when he finds out you want to go. We'll wait to talk about it when school finishes but I'm sure we can make it happen.”

“Okay,” Rory nods to himself “Anyway, I was laying there trying to sleep and all of a sudden it hit me that I wouldn't have all this if Mam hadn't told the truth and found you. Or if you weren't the person you are and didn't want me-”

“-that would _never_ happen. I will _always_ want you. I would have wanted you the moment your Mum found out she was pregnant if I had known. You and Harry are the most important people in the world to me. You'll always come first. Don't ever doubt that okay?” Niall says emphatically, an intense look in his eyes.

“I know,” Rory says with a small smile on his face “I'm not worried about that. It was just hypothetical. I was just realizing I'd have nobody when Mam- when she...well you know. I would go to live with her best friend in Dublin. She's great and I like her a lot but she's not family. I would have been all alone if Mam hadn't found you and it hit me and I don't know what happened. I think-I think it was a panic attack? I've never had one before so I don't know. It was just hard to breathe and even though I'm only wearing a t-shirt, it felt like I was suffocating in it. I didn't know what to do. I just came here to find you.”

“You did the right thing,” Niall tipped his head so that his cheek was resting on the top of Rory's head “If that ever happens again or if you ever need anything at all, you should always come to me or Harry. We will always want to help you.”

“Mmhmm,” Harry hums his agreement “Niall's right. I don't care where I am. I could be out on tour somewhere and I would still want you to call me. One or both of us will always be there when you need us.”

“I can't imagine how you must have felt when you thought you'd be all alone.” Niall blows out a long breath and squeezes Rory's shoulders “I've never had to feel that way because I've always had my family around me. It didn't happen though. Your Mum loves you so much and she made sure you'd be taken care of when she's gone. She found me and she told me the truth even though it was really hard for her. You won't be alone. You'll never be alone. Besides me and Harry you have all the people who were here tonight, plus all our friends as well. There is an endless amount of people waiting to get to know you and be there for you. For the rest of your life, you will be smothered in love.”

“Yeah. Yeah, I can see that. I don't know why I let myself panic like that. What if's never amount to anything. Mam has always said not to dwell on things. Especially things you can't change. Logically I know I won't be alone. I know that. I guess I was just so happy after today that I started thinking about what life would be like if I didn't have all this and...” Rory trailed off, an audible sigh escaping his lips.

“It's okay. That happens sometimes, when you have so many great things in your life. You let yourself think about not having those things and it's scary. Harry and I have known each other for almost five years, been together for almost four of them and sometimes I think about how lucky I am to have him and wonder what I would do if I ever lost him. It's not a nice place to go, let me tell you. It's a horrible feeling.” Niall says, struggling to keep his voice from breaking, not wanting to get too emotional while he son needed him. “Try not to let yourself go there, okay? All that matters is that you have us, we're here for you and you're safe. We'll always be here for you.”

“Thank you,” Rory whispers. He starts shimmying his body around in between Niall and Harry until he's laying on his side and able to wrap his arms around Niall. He rests his head against Niall's bare chest, his hair soft against Niall's chin “I'm- I'm really lucky. I know that sounds silly because my Mam is dying. Nobody should feel lucky in this instance but I do. You're- you're the best, you know? I haven't known you long but I can already tell. I'm happy you're my Dad.”

There's no stopping it now. The tears are already flowing down Niall's cheeks and into Rory's hair as he holds his son tight in his arms. He doesn't know how but somehow he manages to kiss the top of Rory's head and tell him “I'm the lucky one. You're an amazing kid and I'm so happy to be your Dad.”

Harry reaches over and brushes the back of his hand over Niall's cheek and Niall looks over at him, smiling through his tears as he sees his husband crying too. His heart is so full right now and he knows it's the best Christmas he's ever had. He had the love of his life and his beautiful son. Nothing could ever top that.

Rory lifts himself up off Niall's chest after awhile and takes Harry by surprise, wrapping his arms around him and resting his head on Harry's shoulder “I'm really lucky to have you, too, Harry.”

Harry hugs Rory close to him, his eyes wide as he stares at Niall over Rory's shoulder. He opens his mouth to speak but nothing comes out but the beginnings of a sob so he clamps his mouth shut again and just hugs Rory tighter, hoping he can feel everything Harry wants to say.

It's after two in the morning when they say their goodnights, after Rory assures both Niall and Harry that he's perfectly fine and ready to go to sleep and stop fighting the exhaustion taking over his body.

After Rory leaves and the door is closed behind him, Niall turns back around to face the bed, covering his face with his hands and starts sobbing. He presses his back against the door and slides down until he's on his arse and he can bury his face against his knees and thighs. He keeps sobbing, sucking in shaky breaths after each one and he can feel Harry kneeling in front of him, running his long fingers through Niall's hair, comforting him and letting him get everything out.

When he finally stops crying and lifts his head, he looks in to Harry's eyes and immediately he knows Harry's seen something on his face or in his eyes because the concern in his eyes deepens and he's standing up, reaching a hand out for Niall to take so he can pull him up.

“Baby?” Harry takes Niall's face in his hands, his thumbs brushing over his cheeks “What is it? Talk to me.”

“Harry,” Niall croaked out, his voice rough from crying “I'm so scared. I'm so fucking scared.”

Harry licked his lips and swallowed hard as he stared at his husband. He could see the fear and uncertainty in Niall's eyes and it scared him because Niall's always been the strong one in their relationship, the rock for Harry when he was in such a dark place he couldn't see any light, couldn't see anyway out. Niall was so strong and he didn't scare easily. He was calm and rational about things, didn't lose his mind and have temper tantrums over things he couldn't change. So for him to be standing in front of Harry right now, looking him in the eyes and telling him he's scared, it was a big deal.

Harry took a deep breath to calm himself and brought his lips in to kiss Niall once, twice, three times before he pulled back again and ran his thumb over Niall's bottom lip. Niall needed him. He needed him. It was Harry's turn to be the strong one, to let Niall lean on him and let him know everything was going to be okay.

“Tell me,” Harry says softly “Talk to me. I'm here.”

Niall shut his eyes tight for a moment, making a few stray tears fall from his eyes. When he opened them up again they were glistening and they looked an icy blue instead of the sky blue they normally are “I love him so much, Harry. He's my son. He's my _son_. What if I screw him up somehow? What if I'm not good enough? Oh God.”

“Shh, shh, it's okay. Take some deep breaths and try to calm down for me baby.” Harry said in a soothing voice. He removed his hands from Niall's cheeks and wrapped them around his waist instead, pulling him close and lifting him up easily and leaving Niall no choice but to wrap his legs around him. He didn't care at the moment that Niall was a thirty-two year old grown adult that didn't need to be carried around. Harry wanted him as close as possible so he could feel his warmth and feel his heart beating in his chest, feel his love.

“I don't want to screw him up, Harry. He's so good. He's so smart. So mature. He can be anything Harry, anything and what if I screw that up somehow? What if I traumatize him somehow and he goes off and makes bad friends and does drugs and-” Niall hiccuped, stopping himself from talking for a moment. He buried his face his Harry's neck, his hot breath leaving goosebumps on Harry's skin.

Harry walked them across their spacious bedroom and sat them down in an armchair they had by the window. There were three chairs and a table in the area, a small sitting area where Harry liked to sit in the morning with tea, where he liked to write a lot of his lyrics. It was one of his favourite places in the house and that's where they sat now, Niall sitting on Harry's lap with his legs dangling over the side of the chair.

“Niall,” Harry's voice was soft and calm, even though he himself was terrified of screwing this up, of not being able to help Niall, of not saying the right thing “You heard what Rory said, didn't you? He said you're the best and he's happy you're his Dad. That right there proves you're already doing great as a Father.”

“That's because it's only been three months since we met. I haven't had a chance to screw up yet. When Kaetlyn is gone, I'm going to be responsible for him and-” Niall's voice chokes up as he struggles not to cry again “-I want only the best for him. I don't want to ruin his life.”

“That's not going to happen,” Harry said firmly “Baby, everyone who has a child in this world was a first time parent at some point. None of them knew what they were doing. They had to figure it out along the way. It's a part of being a parent. Now it's our turn. We're first time parents and we won't get everything right, we won't, but neither did my Mum, neither did your Mum and neither did any of the parents all over the world for thousands of years. Nobody is perfect. We're not perfect. What we are though is lucky and blessed. Do you know why?”

Niall sniffled and shook his head, his eyes wide as he looks at Harry. Harry wants to coo because he looks like a little boy, not the thirty-two year old sexy man he usually looks like. He needs to stay focused though, so he presses a quick kiss to Niall's lips and continues talking “We're lucky and blessed because we have each other. We're going through this together. When one of us has a bad day, the other one will be there to pick up the slack and give the other one a break. We're a team, you and I, and we're a really fucking good team if you ask me. Together, we're so strong we can do anything, we can get through anything. There's another reason we're lucky though. Rory. He's an amazing person, Niall and he's strong and smart. He'll tell us what he needs, he'll tell us if something's wrong, he'll help us as much as we help him or help each other. The three of us are a family now and whatever life throws at us, we'll get through together. Nobody is going to screw anything up. I mean, you can screw me anytime you want but-”

Niall huffs out a loud laugh, cutting Harry off and making him grin at his husband “You're crazy.”

“Crazy for youuuuu,” Harry sings and Niall laughs louder, throwing his head back and giving Harry a great view of his slender neck and the moles there. “Shhh. It's three in the morning. Don't wake Bobby. He'll kill us.”

Niall snorted and buried his face against Harry's bare chest as he giggled helplessly “He'd probably think we were fucking.”

“He always thinks we're fucking,” Harry rolls his eyes “He thinks we're far hornier than we actually are.”

“Jesus Christ!” Niall gasps, his laughter shaking his body on top of Harry.

“I love it when you laugh. You should always be laughing. You were put on this Earth to laugh and fuck me. I'm convinced.” Harry states, his own giggles muffled in Niall's hair.

“Sometimes I do both at the same time,” Niall laughs, his eyes bright and gleeful “Thank you.”

“For letting you laugh while you fuck me?” Harry deliberately acts obtuse.

“No!” Niall laughs again “For talking me down. I was freaking out.”

“No??” Harry sits back looking shocked “You were? I hadn't noticed.”

“I love you. You're a big idiot and I love you,” Niall said through his laughter.

“I love you, too,” Harry leans forward and kisses Niall's nose “And you're welcome. Whatever you need, I'm here. Always.”

“I know,” Niall said with a tiny smile on his face “I trust you with everything. I trust you the most.”

“I'm glad,” Harry gave Niall a dimpled smile “I feel the same way.”

“Do you think I can get away with blowing you? Or do you think Bobby will hear?” Niall asked suddenly, making Harry nearly choke on air.

“Um. I think I remember you saying one time that he's a heavy sleeper.” Harry licks his lips, his Adams apple bobbing in his throat every time he swallows “But I can be quiet.”

“Can you?” Niall stands up from Harry's lap and holds a hand out to Harry “If you promise to be quiet I really want to blow you.”

“Yes, yes, I will, I promise. I'll moan into a pillow.” Harry stood up and slid his hands over Niall's hips, crowding him as he walked him backwards toward the bed.

“Well if you promise, then I definitely want to blow you. You were so good to me tonight. Made me feel so much better. It turned me on you know?” Niall cranes his neck up to mouth over Harry's defined jaw line.

“Did it?” Harry asked in a low voice, his hands moving over Niall's bare torso, feeling the muscles in his back and stomach.

“You know it did. Our emotional connection has always turned me on. I love having such an intimate connection with you. It's so incredibly sexy isn't it? Knowing there's one person, and only one, in this world that knows you best? Knows everything about your mind, body and soul? It's so fucking sexy.”Niall murmurs in Harry's ear, as he continues to kiss his way along Harry's jaw and down to his neck.

“Yeah,” Harry closes his eyes, savouring the feel of Niall's lips all over him “Fuck, yeah it is.”

When the back of Niall's legs hit the mattress of their bed, he slid his hands up Harry's arms until they reached his biceps, then he quickly flipped them around so that Harry's back was to the bed. He pushed him down onto the bed then quickly dropped his flannel pajama pants, climbing onto Harry naked, straddling his waist so that his cock was brushing right up against Harry's.

“Fuck,” Harry whispered, staying quiet like he said he would. He grabbed Niall's hips and slid his hands around to squeeze his arse, moaning quietly when he got two handfuls of Niall's perfect little arse. Harry loved it so much. Niall isn't into the whole working out thing like Harry is but all the running he does while playing football with his friends has left his arse tight and just the right about of muscular.

“You're almost completely hard already,” Niall bit down on his lip when Harry gripped his arse again and rolled his hips down, chuckling when Harry whimpered and closed his eyes tight. He bent over Harry and began kissing over his abs and up his chest, over his collarbone. His hands followed right after his lips, his calloused fingers tenderly touching every inch of Harry's skin.

“You do that to me,” Harry said in a low voice “You always have. You make me so fucking hard, baby.”

A soft whimper escaped Niall's lips before he placed his hands on either side of Harry's head and leaned down to kiss him hard, his tongue slipping easily into Harry's mouth and stroking over Harry's own tongue, over and over and over again until they both pull away, gasping and struggling to catch their breaths.  
Still breathing hard, Niall slides back down Harry's body and makes quick work of removing Harry's boxers, throwing them behind him then spitting on his hand and grabbing Harry's cock, pumping it slowly until Harry was completely hard and leaking at the tip.

“I love your fucking cock,” Niall practically moaned, his thumb moving over Harry's slit and getting slick from precome.

When his breathing relatively returned to normal, he looked up and made eye contact with Harry, licking out his tongue and flicking it over the tip of Harry's cock, then down the underside until he reaches Harry's balls, licking and sucking over them, making sure they got the attention they deserved too. When he was done, he licked his way back up until he took the head of Harry's cock in his mouth and hallowed his cheeks, sucking him down, down, down, until he couldn't take anymore, then he gripped the base of Harry's cock and started bobbing his head, getting Harry's cock nice and wet.

“Mmm,” Harry moaned quietly “Yeah. Fuck yeah.”

Niall kept going, keeping eye contact with Harry, knowing what it was doing to him to not only see Niall's lips stretched over his cock, but his eyes watery and full of lust and hunger. Niall loved sucking cock and Harry loved that Niall loved sucking cock.

As he picked up the speed, bobbing his head, twisting his hand at the base, and licking and sucking the tip before going right back down as far as he could go, Harry was being true to his word and keeping quiet, his hands gripping the sheets until his knuckles turned white. Instead of loud moaning and constant babbling and dirty talk, Harry was letting out tiny whimpering noises that went straight to Niall's cock. He was also panting and his bottom lip was bitten red from keeping himself quiet. It was so fucking sinful and hot, Niall reached down to his own cock and started pumping it while continuing to suck and lick at Harry's cock.

“Fuck,” Harry groaned when he saw what Niall was doing “Oh God, baby.”

Niall moaned around Harry's cock then pulled off to catch his breath for a moment. He worked Harry's cock with his hand while he took some deep breaths and pressed open mouthed kisses along the inside of Harry's thighs.

When he took Harry's cock back into his mouth, he sucked hard and fast, his tongue swirling around the tip every time he came up far enough, flicking at the slit and making Harry make a low keening noise.

“Close. 'M close Ni. So close,” Harry sounded breathless, his panting picking up the closer he got to his orgasm.

Niall moaned again and looked up at Harry, watching as a few minutes later, Harry's orgasm hit and his back arched off the bed, his head pressed back into the pillow exposing the smooth creamy skin of his long neck. Little whimpers escaped his lips and a hand threaded into Niall's hair as his come shot into Niall's mouth and down the back of his throat.

“Fuck, fuck, _fuck_ ,” Harry was panting heavily “That was so good, baby. Come up here. Want you to come on me.”

Niall groaned and licked the salty taste of Harry's come off his lips, sliding his body back up so that he's straddling Harry's chest and able to pump his cock right over Harry's face. Harry urged him on, rubbing his hands up and down over Niall's thighs and around to his arse, squeezing and digging his nails in just enough for Niall to feel it but not hard enough to leave a mark.

“Come on, love. Come on my face,” Harry said quietly “I know you're close. You're so close. I can tell by the look on your face. Wanna taste you so bad.”

Niall cursed and his hand picked up speed on his cock, quiet little gasps escaping from his lips every time he flicked his wrist. “Harry...Harry.”

“Yeah love, yeah come on, that's it,” Harry coaxed, his fingers digging into Niall's arse, kneading just the way Niall liked “Come on my face, in my mouth.”

Niall sucked in a breath when his orgasm hit, his mouth falling open and his head tipping back as the waves of pleasure hit him. He groaned and his hand slowed down as the last of his come leaked from his cock and onto Harry's face and tongue. His hands came to rest on Harry's chest while his breathing returned to normal and he looked down at his husband with a fond smile, cursing when Harry swiped his finger through his come and sucked it into his mouth.

“You're my little minx aren't you?” Niall shook his head, grinning and leaning down to kiss Harry's red, swollen lips. “My gorgeous husband. You're so beautiful when you come you know? Nobody gets to see that but me. I can't believe how lucky I am.”

“Me too, baby. So, so lucky. I'll never take that for granted. I love you so much. Happy Christmas.” Harry whispered.

“Happy Christmas, H,” Niall smiled down at his husband “I love you.”

 

~~~

 

Christmas Day is spent with the family, opening gifts, eating, drinking and watching Christmas specials on the telly, was the best Christmas Niall has ever had. Having the love of his life and his son next to him, smiling and laughing together- it took his breath away and put a smile so big on his face that Bobby spent the whole day teasing him and Niall didn't care one bit.

For New Years, he and Harry went to a party Ed was hosting at a popular club, and spent the night drinking, dancing and grinding on each other, getting so worked up that when they stumbled into their house at five in the morning, they ripped each others clothes off in the foyer and Niall pushed Harry up against the wall, fucking him until his knees grew weak and he came all over the wall. Then, after some food and a recovery period, they fucked in the kitchen, knocking every magnet, photo, and piece of paper off the refrigerator door when Niall's back slammed up against it when they were locked in a heated snog.

New Years Day was spent recovering from their rowdy night out and then on the fifth of January, Niall returned to work.

“I got spoiled by having you to myself for all those months,” Harry smiled sadly at Niall from across the kitchen table after they finished breakfast. “I'm going to miss you which is kind of silly since we've survived world tours and months apart before. Now I don't want to spend a nine hour work day away from you.”

“Come here,” Niall tipped his head back, indicating he wanted Harry to come sit on his lap. Harry did, straddling him and wrapping his arms around his neck “I know how you feel because I feel the same way. I miss you always, even if it's just for an hour when you're at the grocery store. I'll be thinking about you, though. You're never far from my mind, even when I'm working. I love you, H.”

“I've turned you into such a sap,” Harry grinned. He giggled softly as he leaned in and kissed his husband slowly and thoroughly, leaving him something to think about and look forward to when he came home later “I love you, too. You better get going. There's coffee in your travel mug. I know you like a second cup in the morning when you go to work.”

“Thanks darlin', you're the best,” Niall kissed Harry's lips one last time then they both stood up, Harry helping Niall into his suit jacket while they walked to the door.

“Forgot how fucking hot you are in a suit,” Harry groaned while running his hands over Niall's broad shoulders, adjusting the jacket so it's not wrinkled over Niall's shoulders “Why couldn't you be a delivery boy instead of a business man?”

Niall snorted and turned around to hug Harry one more time “Don't think delivering pizza would pay for my very expensive university education.”

“Don't make me start thinking about twenty year old you, studying at Uni and looking fucking hot in your jumper and glasses.” Harry pouted.

Niall laughed loudly, grabbed his briefcase, and kissed Harry quickly on the cheek “I'll see you this evening after work. Love you.”

Love you, too,” Harry called after him, standing in the doorway and waving to him as he started his car and drove away.


	2. Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Niall and Harry have to get used to having a teenager living with them full time after Rory's Mum dies. Also, they must deal with all the ups and downs when they start a family of their own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was supposed to be the last part of this series, however a03 says it's too long and I have to break it up into chapters. I'm sure I've posted longer things than this but maybe I'm wrong. Anyway I'll divide it into more than one chapter and I apologize for saying it would only be the two chapters. I really did think it would all fit into two. So you'll get the exact same ending to the story, it'll just be in more parts.
> 
> Right now I just have a bit more to write and edit but since I have to break it up into parts I figured I could post chapter two for you all to read while you're waiting. 
> 
> I know I mentioned this in Part One but I want to reiterate that there is some talk about Football in this part. I enjoy watching the game but I'm not from England so I have no idea how the Premier League works or how the clubs work except that each club as an academy and players usually make their way from the academy to First Team eventually. I know nothing else so what I write is most likely what I made up for the story. It's all fiction so hopefully I don't offend any huge Football fans in England.
> 
> There's also some medical talk in this part. I'm not a Doctor or a Nurse, my medical knowledge comes from the television and the internet. There's bound to be some mistakes but I hope you can look past them and enjoy the story anyway.
> 
> I really hope you all enjoy this next part. Thank you all for reading and sticking with this story. It means a lot. Please let me know what you think! Your comments make me so happy and give me encouragement to keep writing!
> 
> Enjoy :)

 

 

 

 

 

Harry and Niall got into a routine pretty easily once Niall went back to work. Harry started working with Ed while Niall was at work during the day. Now that Harry was taking some time off, both men were exited to finally work on an album together. It was early yet. They were just brainstorming song ideas and fooling around in the studio with their guitars and piano, trying out a few things to see what they liked best. It was too early to tell if any of the songs they write together will end up on Ed's album but either way, they're having the time of their lives and really getting to enjoy their friendship without one or both of them jetting off on a world tour.

 

On the weekends, Niall and Harry would spend time with Rory and sometimes Rory would come over after school and hang out with Harry and Ed until Niall came home. Then they'd eat dinner together before Rory went back to his Mums house for the night. The three of them were bonding as a family and it was going well. That's all Niall could ever ask for.

 

At the end of January, Niall was at work, immersed in a long meeting and away from his phone for awhile, having left it on his desk in his office. When the meeting finished at around four, he went back to his office and saw he had a missed call from Harry and a text simply saying _call me._

 

Furrowing his brow, he clicked on Harry's name, wondering what was going on as he sat down in his chair behind his desk. Harry never called him at work. He only texted and knew that Niall would always text him back as long as he wasn't in a meeting or working against a deadline on something. So for him to call...

 

“Niall. Hi, love.” Harry picked up on the third ring.

 

“Hi. I saw your missed call and got your text. Everything okay?” Niall asked.

 

“Not exactly,” Harry said, causing Niall's heart to pick up speed and his hands to become sweaty “Kaetlyn...she's not doing good, Niall. She was brought to hospital after her neighbour called an ambulance. She knew you were at work and didn't want to bother you so she had a nurse call me and let me know. I called you before I went to pick Rory up from school but when you didn't answer, I knew you must be in a meeting so I explained to him what was going on when I picked him up and now we're at the hospital. I'm sorry. I didn't want to tell him without you. I just didn't know how long you'd be.”

 

“It's okay. You did the right thing, H. When it comes to Rory you know I trust you completely. You can make decisions without me. It's okay.” Niall runs a hand through his hair and starts pacing around his office “How is he?”

 

“Holding up. He's strong and stubborn like you. Doesn't want to cry in front of me. Doesn't want me to know he's scared. I can tell, though. He's scared and I think he could really use his Dad.” Harry's voice is soft and soothing, calm and caring. It's exactly what Niall needs right now.

 

“Tell him I'm on my way, H. Take care of him until I get there, yeah?” Niall grabs his keys and coat, not bothering with his suit jacket, leaving it hung on the coat tree in his office “I love you.”

 

“You know I will. Love you, too. Drive safe. Don't speed.” Harry warned him, then he told Niall which hospital they were at and they hung up so Niall could drive.

 

The hospital wasn't in Chelsea since Kaetlyn didn't live there. She was brought to the hospital closest to her flat which meant a bit of a drive for Niall but he didn't panic or rush, he knew Rory was in good hands with Harry. Harry loved him as much as Niall did.

 

When he finally got to the hospital and parked the car, he walked into A&E and was told by a nurse that Miss O'Brien had been brought to palliative care which was located on the fifth floor.

 

Niall's heart sank and he couldn't move for a minute. Palliative care meant Kaetlyn wouldn't be going home ever again. It meant she might not even make it a few more days. Palliative care was where people who were terminal went so they could be comfortable and not in any pain until their time came. His heart broke for his Son and his hands were shaking as he pressed the button on the elevator to the fifth floor.

 

What felt like ten hours was actually only a minute, and then he heard the ding and the doors were opening onto the fifth floor. It was eerily silent, of course it was, people were dying, and it sent a shiver down Niall's spine as he turned left at the elevator like the nurse in A&E told him to. When he found the room where family members could sit quietly and have tea or coffee, he saw his husband immediately, his arm resting comfortingly across Rory's back.

 

Harry saw him first. Their eyes met and Niall could see Harry's love for him in there. When Harry nodded his head slightly, he knew it meant _'It's okay, love. You've got this. You can do this. I love you.'_ It gave Niall the strength he knew he needed. It made him feel safe and loved and he knew he needed that so he could be there for his son.

 

He gave Harry a small smile and a little nod back, then he took a deep breath in through his nose and let it out through his mouth slowly before he said softly “Hi.”

 

Rory was sitting bent over with his elbows on his knees and his head hanging down. When he heard Niall, his head snapped up and he looked at Niall with watery, scared eyes for a moment before jumping up onto his feet.

 

“Dad! You're here,” Rory's voice broke on the last word and a tiny sob escaped his lips as he flung his arms around Niall and buried his face in Niall's neck “Dad...”

 

Niall heard Harry gasp and stand up from his chair next to them. Their eyes met immediately, both wide and both filling up with tears they were both desperately trying to hold back. His son just called him Dad for the first time. Niall's not even sure if Rory realized he said it but Niall doesn't care. It's the best thing he's ever heard. Right up there with Harry saying 'I do' on their wedding day.

 

“Hey,” Niall squeezed his son tight, one of his hands cupping the back of Rory's head and neck. He pressed a kiss to the side of Rory's head then rested his chin on top of his head, slowly rocking them back and forth.

 

They stayed silent for a bit while Rory quietly cried into Niall's neck. Niall could feel the hot tears hitting his skin and it was taking everything he had not to break down crying with him. He didn't want to do that. His son may be fifteen and mature for his age but right now he was just a frightened boy who's mother is dying. He's a boy who is losing the only parent he's ever known and loved.

 

When Rory's crying subsided, Niall sat them down on one of the couches in the room, making sure to keep his arms wrapped around his son. He wanted to soothe him and tell him everything was going to be okay but it wasn't- his mother is dying and that is most certainly not okay. He wasn't going to lie to his son.

 

“Hey,” Niall spoke softly, his chin still resting on top of Rory's head “I'm here. I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere. Harry is here. He isn't going anywhere either. You won't be alone, not for one second. We love you, Rory. We do. So much. One of the best days of my life was when I found out I had a son. When I found out about _you_. You will never _ever_ be alone.”

 

Rory sniffled and pressed his head into Niall's chest, rubbing his cheek against Niall's dress shirt. When he spoke, his voice was timid and quiet, the complete opposite of what it usually was and it broke Niall's heart to hear it. He'd gotten used to his son's loud, vibrant personality over the past four months. “Okay. Thank you. I- I wouldn't know what to do if you weren't here.”

 

“We'll get through this together, yeah? You, me and Harry.” Niall murmured, running his fingers through his sons brown hair.

 

“Yeah,” Rory sat back and took his arms from around Niall, wiping the tears off his face “I'm just- I'm going to go to the bathroom so I can go back with Mam after the Doctor comes out.”

 

Well that answered Niall's question about whether or not Rory had seen his Mum yet “Okay. We'll wait for you right here. Take your time.”

 

Rory nodded and stood up, walking out into the hallway with his head down and his shoulders slumped.

 

Once he was gone, Niall's body slumped over against Harry's and Harry immediately wrapped his arms around him, kissing his cheek several times and holding him tight “You're doing great, baby. You're doing amazing. He felt safe enough to cry in front of you, he trusts you and you're not letting him down. I'm so proud of you.”

 

“He- he called me Dad, H. He called me Dad.” Niall whispered.

 

“Yeah baby, I heard. He loves you. He hasn't said it yet but he will in time. I see it every time I see you together.” Harry's voice was deep and soothing, his touch gentle and loving. Every thing Niall needed right now.

 

“God knows I love him too. With every thing I've got.” Niall swiped a hand over his face, already feeling fatigue setting in when he'd only been awake since six-thirty that morning. Not even twelve hours yet. “I think it's going to be a long few days. When Rory goes back in with Kaetlyn, I'm going to go outside for a minute and call my boss, let him know I won't be in for a few days. I just came back from a leave of absence. I need to explain why I'm disappearing again.”

 

“He's a good man, your boss. He'll understand.” Harry said “After that, don't worry about anything else, just focus on Rory. I'll call the school in the morning and let them know Rory will be absent indefinitely and I'll call Louis to grab us all some clothes from the house so we can change in the morning. If there's anything else you need, tell me. Let me take care of you.”

 

Niall sighs and pushes off of Harry to sit up straight again. He brought his thumb and forefinger to the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes and squeezing his fingers to try and stave off the headache that was slowly taking over his brain. When he drops his fingers he opens his eyes to look Harry in the eyes “I don't think I've ever needed you as much as I do right now, H.”

 

Harry reached out and put a hand on Niall's shoulder, the other hand sliding behind his head to cup his neck. He brought their foreheads together and for a moment they're completely quiet. Content to just be touching, to be close to each other.

 

When Harry speaks again, his voice is rough and Niall knows it's because he's holding back tears “I love you. You can lean on me. I'd do anything for you.”

 

“Mmm,” Niall hummed to himself “Even help me hide the body when I eventually murder Louis when he's in brat mode?”

 

“I reckon we'd have to sneak into one of those places where they have an incinerator to cremate people. We'd cremate him and destroy all the evidence along with him.” Harry said with a serious look on his face.

 

“You're too much,” Niall manages a quiet laugh “I love you a lot.”

 

“A lot, a lot?” Harry asked with a tiny smile on his face.

 

“A million times a lot,” Niall closed the small gap between their lips, kissing Harry square on the lips.

 

“Sorry to interrupt,” A man's voice sounded from the doorway “I was coming to ask you if your husband arrived yet.” The Doctor said to Harry “I'm going to guess he has. Mr. Horan?”

 

“Yeah, yes, that's me,” Niall stood up and shook the Doctors hand “What's going on with Kaetlyn?”

 

“I'm afraid she's not doing well. I'm not expecting her to make it through the night.” The Doctor says sadly “She's conscious for the moment but she'll most likely slip into a coma within the next few hours and once she does, she won't be waking up again.”

 

“Oh God,” Niall whispered. Harry's hand was holding his and he squeezed tightly, afraid to let go “How am I supposed to tell my son that?”

 

“I can be there with you if you like?” The Doctor offers kindly “For right now, Kaetlyn has asked to speak with you alone Mr. Horan. After that, it would be a good idea for your son to sit with her again. He'll get a chance to say goodbye before she slips unconscious.”

 

“Oh my God,” Niall fought to hold back his tears “I-I better go see her then? So Rory can go in when he comes back from the bathroom.”

 

“I'll wait right here for Rory. Go ahead,” Harry said to his husband, squeezing Niall's hand one last time before letting go.

 

“I'll show you to her room,” The Doctor says, turning around and indicating for Niall to follow him.

 

When Niall walks into the room a couple of minutes later, he hears two things. The sounds of the machines beeping and the very shallow, rattling breathing coming from Kaetlyn. Every time she took in a breath there was a crackling sound and Niall knew it was only a matter of time before she wasn't breathing at all.

 

He shut the door quietly behind him and walked toward the bed, stifling a gasp when he saw her sunken cheeks and pasty skin. She was nothing but skin and bones, a mere shell of her former self.

 

“Niall?” Her voice startled Niall. He didn't think she had any idea he was even here yet.

 

“Yes. I'm here,” Niall says quietly, picking up her hand in his and sitting next to her bed.

 

“I don't have much time,” She says, stopping to take in a shaky breath “I just want to say-” Another shaky breath “-thank you-” shaky breath “-for everything. Take care of my boy, okay? He'll need you now.”

 

Niall squeezed her hand in his, a single tear escaping his eye that he didn't bother to wipe away “We will. Me and Harry. I promise. We love him so much.”

 

Katelyn nodded her head against the pillow, swallowing a few times before she spoke again “I don't want him to see me die.”

 

“I understand but Kaetlyn, he wants to be here. He will refuse to leave you alone. He can handle it. I know he can. In the long run, isn't it better that he gets to be here with you until the end instead of spending the rest of his life regretting not staying with you? Regret can eat a person alive. Neither one of us wants that for him. I think we should let this be his decision. I think we should trust him on this.”

 

In the end, Kaetlyn agreed with Niall and didn't put up a fight when Rory refused to leave until it was all over. He was there with her when she slipped into a coma around ten at night, and he was still there at four-thirty in the morning when she took her last breath and the Doctor officially declared her gone. Niall and Harry were there too, holding him close while he cried, gut wrenching sobs that ripped Niall's heart out. He felt helpless. The last time he felt that way was when Harry was sobbing over Jack and Niall was falling in love with him.

 

They finally leave the hospital at five-thirty, Harry carrying the bags Louis had packed for them, the bags they ended up not needing. Niall kept his arms around his son, desperately hoping it was enough. Desperately hoping Rory could feel how much he loved him.

 

“Hey,” Harry's voice cut through the quiet of the car park “I'll drive. We can pick up your car later. You can sit in the back with Rory.”

 

Niall agreed, knowing he was in no state to drive right now and nowhere near ready to let go of his son. He climbed into the back of Harry's car, pulling a silently crying Rory in with him and buckled them up while Harry pulled out of the car park into the light early morning traffic.

 

It was a quiet ride home. Harry didn't turn on the radio and none of them spoke. The only sounds they heard were Rory's sniffles and the occasional sounds of a car horn honking or sirens off in the distance.

 

When the three of them got home and dragged their tired bodies inside, Niall stopped his son at the bottom of the stairs before he went up to his bedroom. “You going to try and get some sleep?”

 

“Yeah,” Rory said quietly. His eyes were red and swollen from crying and his cheeks were flushed for the same reason.

 

“Do you want me to stay with you? I don't mind,” Niall brushes his sons hair over his forehead and out of his eyes, his fingers lingering on Rory's cheek.

 

“No, I'm okay.” Rory says with a small smile “I'm really tired. I'm just going to try and sleep.”

 

“Okay. If you can't sleep or you need anything, come get us, yeah? We'll be here.” Niall tells him.

 

“Okay, I will. Thank you,” Rory says before turning to go up the stairs.

 

“Rory?” Niall reaches out and grabs his wrist at the last second to stop him “I love you. We're going to get through this.”

 

Rory stepped back down off the steps so he was standing even with Niall and wrapped his arms around his neck, hugging him tight “I love you, too, Dad. Thanks for everything.”

 

Niall hugged his son back, kissing his cheek before letting him go. He holds him at arms length for a moment, too choked up to say anything but a whispered “You're welcome.” Then he sends him upstairs to get some rest, squeezing his arm reassuringly one more time.

 

After Rory heads upstairs, Niall goes into the kitchen looking for Harry. He's making them both a cup of tea before they too, head up to bed.

 

“Rory gone up to get some rest?” Harry asks quietly, stirring a bit of milk into their tea.

 

“He is, yeah,” Niall sighs and wearily sits down at the kitchen table “I hope he can get some sleep. He said he's really tired.”

 

“I reckon we all are,” Harry smiles sadly “He's so brave though. So strong. He's going to come out of this just fine.”

 

“Is that a good thing though? Him being brave?” Niall asks “I don't want him to hold back and not cry and grieve because he thinks he's supposed to be brave. I want him to feel what he's feeling and let us help him through it.”

 

“Maybe we can talk to him about it later, once we've had some rest. We can let him know he doesn't have to hold back around us. I think he knows that already but it doesn't hurt to remind him anyway. We can- we can tell him about Aiden and Jack. So he'll know what we're saying isn't just words. We actually understand.” Harry says, taking a sip from his tea.

 

“That's probably a good idea,” Niall begins yawning even before he's finished his sentence, his eyes looking droopy.

 

“Go to bed, baby,” Harry reaches over and squeezes his hand “I'm just going to stay up until the school opens so I can let them know Rory will be out for a few days. Then I'll be up to join you.”

 

“I can't do that, Harry. You're exhausted too.” Niall protests.

 

“I'm fine. I'm used to this kind of fatigue from touring. I'm going to call Louis while I wait. He wanted me to let him know what happened after he left.” Harry says “Please, Niall, go to bed. Let me do this for you.”

 

“Alright,” Niall stood up, barely able to stay awake “I love you, Harry. Thank you.”

 

“I love you, too, baby,” Harry kissed him softly “I'll be up soon.”

 

It didn't take long for Niall to fall asleep in their bed. He brushed his teeth, left his clothes on the floor, and by the time his head hit the pillow he was fast asleep.

 

~~~

 

 Niall isn't sure what time Harry came to bed but they both ended up getting out of bed by eleven that morning after only a few hours sleep. Rory seemed to do much better in the sleep department, not showing up in the kitchen until after two in the afternoon looking very subdued.

 

“Hey,” Harry greets Rory as he sits down at the table “Can I get you something to eat or drink?”

 

Rory shrugged his shoulders, not lifting his head at all to make eye contact “Just some cereal I guess. I don't care what kind. I'm not really hungry.”

 

“Okay,” Harry nods slightly, heading over to grab the cereal from the cupboard and pouring some into a bowl, bringing the bowl and the milk to the table for Rory.

 

“Hey Rory?” Niall puts down his coffee cup, taking in his son as he pours milk on his cereal “I want to say something if it's okay with you? You don't have to say anything, just listen.”

 

“Sure,” Rory rubbed at his eyes with his fingers, then sighed and picked up his spoon to shovel some cereal into his mouth.

 

“I just want to tell you I understand what you're going through right now and because I do understand, I'm not going to sit here and tell you everything is okay or keep asking you over and over again if you're okay. That didn't help me when I lost someone close to me. I knew people meant well but hearing them tell me it was okay when it wasn't okay just made me angry. I just needed space. So, if that's what you need, you'll have it. Whatever you need, you'll have it.” Niall tells his son. “I won't bring this up again. I won't constantly nag you, asking if you're okay every five minutes. I'll trust you to come to me if and when you need something okay?”

 

Rory is quiet for awhile, the only sound in the room being the hum of the refrigerator and Rory's spoon hitting against his bowl every time he scooped up some cereal on his spoon. “Who did you lose?” He asks when he finally speaks again.

 

“My husband,” Niall says honestly “I was married when I was twenty-two. Lost him when I was twenty-three. We were only married for ten months.”

 

“Oh,” Rory stares wide eyed at his father “You were married before Harry? I didn't know that.”

 

“No. We haven't really had a reason to talk about it until now,” Niall says “It was a pretty dark time for me. I didn't get out of bed some days, I shut my friends and family out when I needed them. I want you to know you don't have to do that.”

 

“Wow. I guess you really do understand how I feel.”

 

“I do,” Niall gives his son a small smile “Harry does as well. So you can talk to him too, if you want.”

 

“Yeah,” Harry speaks up, clearing his throat “I wasn't married but my boyfriend and I were together for five years when he died.”

 

“Really?” Rory stares back and forth between Niall and Harry “Wow. I never would have guessed it. I mean, it's only been a few months since we met but I can't even picture you being in other relationships.”

 

“Did you think we were monks before we met?” Niall says lightly, a small smile on his lips.

 

“No,” Rory rolled his eyes like only a teenager can “I think I just always thought you were together since you moved here from Ireland for Uni.”

 

“I'd be in prison if that were the case,” Niall said, Harry snorting beside him. “I was seventeen when I moved here. Harry would have been fourteen.”

 

“Oh. Right,” Rory screwed his face up at the thought “So...if you were married so young, does that mean you met him at Uni? Your first husband I mean.”

 

“I did yeah. We started dating only three months after I got here. He was Irish as well but he was a year older than me so he had come over for Uni the year before.” Niall explained.

 

Rory slowly shook his head back and forth, his eyes cast down as he clearly was processing something in his brain “That must have- I mean that's got to be worse than what I'm going through now. You were supposed to spend the rest of your life with him. Mam would have always been in my life but I wouldn't have been living with her. I would have my own life, my own family someday. He _was_ your life, your family and then he was just...gone. I don't understand how you got through it.”

 

“Losing someone you love, hurts no matter who it is. I don't think it was any worse for me than it is for you now. The way I loved Aiden was different than the way you loved your Mum but never more important.” Niall says gently “As for how I got through it...” Niall stopped and looked up at the ceiling, blowing out a long breath “I almost didn't. I was in a dark place for a long time. I distanced myself from my family and friends. I treated them so badly they went away and left me alone and miserable since that's what I kept claiming to want. They knew nothing they did could help me. They had to stand back and watch me suffer until I figured it out for myself. It didn't have to be that way. All I had to do was lean on them. I eventually met some people online. They all lost someone too and we helped each other. Three years later, that's where I met Harry.”

 

“So like, what you're saying is, I shouldn't push you and Harry away? I should lean on you instead of trying to do it all alone?” Rory asked.

 

“Yes,” Niall nodded “We won't crowd you or anything. We understand that sometimes you'll need to be alone. We just want you to know that you can come to us at any time. If it all becomes too much and you feel overwhelmed, let us help you. That's what we're here for.”

 

“Thank you,” Rory says after another long few minutes of silence “For telling me that, I mean. I'll tell you if I need anything. I promise.”

 

“Alright. We'll leave it there then,” Niall stands up to bring his coffee mug to the dishwasher “I'll get started on funeral arrangements. Your Mum told me she left instructions in her will about what she wanted. I'll find out from her attorney and then I can take care of everything. Just let me know if you want to help at all, okay?”

 

Rory nodded and got up to bring his bowl to the sink “I think I'd like to go back to sleep now.”

 

“Okay,” Niall holds Rory's face in his hands and kisses his forehead “We'll be here when you wake up.”

 

Once Rory was gone, Harry and Niall went into the living room and Niall curled up against Harry, Harry throwing a blanket over the both of them.

 

“This probably isn't a good time but I need to talk to you about something,” Harry says quietly, his lips brushing against Niall's cheek.

 

“What is it?” Niall asks warily, cuddling closer into Harry, one leg thrown over Harry's lap.

 

“When I spoke to Louis this morning he gave me a heads up that someone got a picture of me walking into the hospital. Apparently everyone went nuts and thought something was wrong with you. I went on twitter before I came to bed and tweeted that you're fine, we were just visiting someone.” Harry tells his husband.

 

“That doesn't sound bad.” Niall sounds confused.

 

“No. The bad part is, the paps got pictures of you Christmas shopping with Rory. They got some of the three of us together another day. Since then there's been a lot of speculation on who Rory is. The fans have noticed he looks exactly like you and the consensus seems to be he's your cousin or a younger brother from your Mum's second marriage.”

 

“Jesus Christ,” Niall cursed “Why do they have to bring Mum into this? Honestly.”

 

“I'm sorry,” Harry sounds close to tears “You shouldn't have to deal with this when you're getting to know your son and now trying to get him through losing his Mum. I hate that I've done this to you.”

 

“You haven't done anything to me Harry,” Niall sighed. He could feel his body tensing up because they've had this conversation before, more than once, and it never bothered Niall. He understood where Harry was coming from, his insecurities about someone he loves leaving because they can't deal with his life style. Niall always comforted him and just showed him he loved him and Harry would eventually calm down and all would be well.

 

Not this time. Niall was exhausted physically and mentally, running on maybe four hours sleep. He had a teenage son upstairs that just lost his mother and the last thing he wanted to do was have this conversation with Harry again.

 

“I have though. It's my fault. If I just had a normal job and nobody knew who I was, this wouldn't be happening. Now Rory is getting dragged into it and it's not fair.” Harry said, his voice rough with tears.

 

“Harry, stop,” Niall said, trying to keep his voice even. “Please.”

 

But Harry didn't hear him apparently because he kept going on and on about it and apologizing and Niall's not sure at what point he snapped, he just knows he did and was now standing on his feet in front of Harry with his hands in his hair, exasperated by it all.

 

“Harry, for fucks sake. Are you listening to yourself right now? You're apologizing for being successful. People know who you are, the paps follow you around because your music is successful, your songwriting is successful, your performances on tour are successful. Your career is successful! Why are you apologizing for that? You should be proud. You should never apologize for being good at your job.” Niall's voice was rising with his exasperation and when he looked at Harry, Harry was staring at him with wide eyes.

 

“That's not- I'm not apologizing for being successful. I'm apologizing for exposing you to all the madness that comes with it.” Harry says carefully.

 

“Well what do you want me to do, Harry?” His voice sounded shrill and for a moment he thought he sounded like Louis. “Do you want me to divorce you? Is that what you want?”

 

“No!” Harry gasped “Niall, no!”

 

“Then _what_?” Niall turned on him, anger in his voice and all over his face “What, Harry? I knew what I was getting into when we became a couple. I still knew what I was getting into when we got married. I don't care about paps. I don't care about all that and I've told you that a million times! That hasn't changed. I still don't care. Like the writing on Louis' chest says 'It is what it is' so why are we talking about this right now? I'm so tired and I have a headache. Why are we talking about this again?”

 

Harry sat completely still on the couch, his eyes wide as he took Niall in. His shoulders were tense and he looked like he wanted to fold in on himself and Niall did that. He did that and he couldn't take it.

 

“I'll be in my office if Rory needs me,” He managed to say before he took off out of the living room and into his office, shutting the door behind him and closing all the blinds before falling back onto the leather couch. He rolled over on his stomach and buried his face in a throw pillow, hot tears running down his cheeks. Tears of anger, frustration, sadness and helplessness. Mostly anger though, anger at himself for letting his frustration get the best of him which led to him losing his temper which then led to him taking it out on Harry.

 

When he eventually fell asleep with tears drying on his face, the last thing he thought of was the look on Harry's face when he yelled at him.

 

 

~~~

 

 

Niall isn't sure how long he was asleep but when he woke up it was dark outside the blinds which meant it was at least past six in the evening. He stood up and stretched, his eyes feeling a bit sore and swollen from when he was crying before he fell asleep. He left his office and headed down the hall to the half bathroom there, washing his face and pissing before he went to find his husband. He remembers what happened before he fell asleep and he felt sick to his stomach about it. He needed to apologize for his behaviour and ask for forgiveness for being a complete dick.

 

He heard voices when he neared the living room and stopped just outside when he saw his husband and son side by side on the couch. They were very immersed in a conversation about a book that was sitting on Rory's lap and Niall looked on, fascinated by how animated his son had become. His hands were moving as he talked, his voice had an excitement to it that Niall had only heard when he spoke about football.

 

Niall couldn't see what the book was but after listening for a bit, he realized they were discussing 'The Catcher in the Rye'. Niall remembered having to read it in high school and he suspected Rory was doing the same thing now in his literature class. It warmed his heart to see him talking to Harry about it. Harry loves all the classics and could spend all day talking about them, sharing his opinions and listening to other peoples opinions, debating on different aspects of the book.

 

As they continued to debate about the book, Niall stood out of sight, a warm smile on his face. He already loved Harry fiercely but he found himself falling in love with him even more because he was taking the time to sit with this boy who wasn't even his and talk to him about something they clearly both loved, effectively taking Rory's mind off the loss of his mother for awhile.

 

Eventually, he decided he had to walk in and let them know he was there. He couldn't stand there all night with a silly grin on his face, so he went back into the kitchen first to grab a bottle of water, then he made his way back to the living room, walking in and sitting in an armchair perpendicular to the couch.

 

“Hi,” Harry spoke first “I made Risotto. We already ate but we didn't want to wake you so we left you some on a plate. It's in the microwave.”

 

“Thank you. I'll grab it in a minute,” Niall looked at Harry, hoping Harry could see in his eyes how sorry he was “Did you get anymore sleep Rory?”

 

“A bit, yeah. I talked to my best mates for awhile. Do you think they could come over tomorrow after school? They said they'd bring my school work for me. I don't want to get behind. It'll be annoying trying to catch up.” Rory asked.

 

“I think so. Harry? Are you alright with it?” Niall asked his husband. He wanted to reach over the arm of the chair and hold out his hand to him but was afraid of how he'd feel if he was rejected.

 

“Yes. I think it'll be nice to have your friends around right now.” Harry said to Rory.

 

“Alright. As long as it's okay with their parents. They might find it a bit strange that their kids are going to their friends Dad's house who you didn't even know existed a few months ago.” Niall said “If they want to call first, it's okay to give them my number.”

 

Rory shrugged “I don't think it'll be a problem. My two best mates know all about you and when I told them your name, Zee's Mum knew who you were. Apparently she knows Harry.”

 

“You've told me about your friend Zee before. What's his last name?” Niall asked, sharing a confused look with Harry.

 

“Rossdale.” Rory said simply.

 

Niall was still confused but Harry's face brightened up and he immediately seemed to know who Rory was talking about.

 

“No way!” Harry laughed “Zuma Rossdale is your best mate?”

 

“Since I moved here to England, yeah. He's not here all the time but we usually Skype when he's in LA.” Rory explained.

 

“Still in the dark here,” Niall looked back and forth between Harry and Rory.

 

Harry laughed and looked over at Niall with a big smile “Zuma Rossdale is Gwen Stefani's son. In fact I've met Zuma. He was a kid then. It was about six years ago. I was an advisor on Gwen's team on 'The Voice'. She used to bring her kids sometimes.”

 

“Jesus.” Niall swiped a hand over his face “Small world innit?”

 

“It's great! We can invite Gwen over for dinner some time. I haven't seen her in ages.” Harry looks delighted “She moved here right?” Harry asked Rory “I think she told me that at a party a couple years ago.”

 

“Yeah. I think she's here a lot of the time. When she has to go to America for work, Zuma stays with his Dad. He said his Dad moved back here after they got divorced and he and his brothers wanted to live in London so I guess she went with it and just divides her time between two countries.” Rory shrugged.

 

“Does your other best mate have a famous parent as well?” Niall joked “A Kardashian maybe?”

 

“God no,” Rory snorted “Tyler's parents aren't famous. His Mum's a nurse. His Dad drives those buses that bring tourists around London. We went with him one time, when I first moved here. Helped me figure out the city.”

 

“Alright. Invite them over. I'd love to meet them.” Niall smiled at his son. “Do you mind if I borrow Harry for a moment? I need to talk to him about something.”

 

Rory nodded his head and Niall and Harry stood up and went into the kitchen, Niall throwing his arms around Harry the minute they get in there. “I'm sorry, darlin'. I'm such a dick.”

 

“You're not,” Harry wrapped his arms around Niall, kissing his neck a few times softly “You're not a dick. You're my amazing husband and I'm not going to stand here and let you talk about yourself like that.”

 

“Harry,” Niall sighed and pressed his cheek against Harry's shoulder “I hurt you. I know I did, I saw it on your face. I lost my temper and took it out on you. That's not okay.”

 

Harry slipped his hands up the back of Niall's t-shirt, knowing the feeling of skin on skin was comforting to him “No. It's not okay but you know that and you've apologized for it. We're married, Niall, and we're going to be married for sixty years or more hopefully, so we're going to hurt each other sometimes. It's inevitable. We'll always come back and make it right though.”

 

“I know. I just- I don't lose my temper very often and when I do, I don't want to be taking it out on you. I promised myself a long time ago I'd never do that.” Niall pulled back to look Harry in the eye “I love you. You're the best thing in my life, you and Rory. I'll try to do better next time I'm feeling frustrated.”

 

“It's okay, love. I promise you I'm fine. It's been a rough day and a half. We're both exhausted, both wanting to help Rory, both feeling frustrated that there's nothing else we can do but be here. I understand. Let's forget about it now, yeah? I'll heat up your Risotto. You must be starving.” Harry leaned down to kiss his nose “Come on. You can eat in the living room. We'll sit with Rory for a bit.”

 

“Okay. I am pretty hungry.” Niall spoke to Harry's back while Harry was setting the timer on the microwave “I heard you and Rory ya know? Before I walked in the living room just now. He told us at Christmas he loved books and you engaged him in conversation about one of the classics when he needed a bit of a distraction. Do you know how incredible you are? I fell in love with you even more when I heard you. I didn't even think that was possible.”

 

“It was nothing,” Harry smiled sheepishly “He brought the book downstairs with him. It's one of my favourites so I asked him what he thought and it just went from there. He's so smart Niall. Such a sharp mind. Insightful as well. Some of his thoughts on the main character...they were amazing. I never saw the character the way he does but when I was listening to him I just kept thinking how much it made sense. I was so proud listening to him. I just love him so much, ya know? It feels like he's my son, too.”

 

“He is. He's our son. You're his step-dad. You love him just as much as I do and I love you so much for that. Thank you for accepting my son and loving him. It means more to me than I could ever describe.” Niall says, getting choked up just as the microwave beeped to let them know the food was ready.

 

Harry brushed a thumb over his cheek and kissed him quickly before turning around and grabbing the plate from the microwave “Come on. Grab something to drink and some cutlery. I have a lot more I want to say about that book!”

 

Niall laughed and shook his head at his husband then he grabbed a fork from the drawer and followed him back to the living room with a smile on his face.

 

~~~

 

 

The next few months were hard to say the least. First there was the memorial service for Kaetlyn to get through, then Rory went back to school and Niall went back to work. Then there was the matter of Rory getting acclimated to his new environment. Sure he had spent some nights at Niall and Harry's house and sure he got along with Niall and Harry, had fun with them, loved them, but that didn't mean living with someone new twenty four hours a day was all sunshine and roses.

 

There was an adjustment period for Niall and Harry as well. They had to get used to a teenager being around all the time and not just a normal, happy teenager, but a teenager who was missing his mother and struggling to find a place for himself in this brand new life he was living. Sometimes he was fine, sometimes he was moody, and neither Niall nor Harry have ever dealt with anything like that before. It led to some arguments between the three of them, some slamming doors, a few tears, but in the end they always apologized to each other and forgave each other.

 

Another big adjustment for Rory was the paparazzi. Niall and Harry didn't want him to have to deal with any of that while he was grieving and trying to get used to his new life but unfortunately that wasn't about to happen. The press was relentless in trying to figure out who Rory was and every time he went out with Niall or Harry, new pictures of him showed up on the internet. When they eventually figured out where he went to school and started standing around outside the gates of the school, Niall lost his shit. Of course, it ended up on the internet.

 

Harry was in LA working on some songs with a new artist when Niall showed up at the school to pick Rory up from football practice. He spotted a small group of paps hanging around outside the grounds and immediately saw red. There was a lot of yelling and Niall turned full Irish on them, spitting out every curse word he knew.

 

It was a disaster. When they got home, Rory went off on him for what he did, saying it would be all over the internet and everyone in his school would see it and think Niall was mental. Niall yelled back, saying he was just trying to protect Rory but Rory didn't want to hear it. He stormed off to his bedroom, slamming the door and leaving Niall standing in the foyer downstairs wondering what the hell just happened.

 

Of course it didn't stop there. Within the hour, Niall got a call from Harry's very angry publicist who kept him on the phone for half an hour yelling at him. Then, Harry called, also yelling at him for not calling him and telling him what happened. Niall felt like the world was ganging up on him at this point and promptly hung up on Harry after telling him to go fuck himself.

 

After that he turned off his phone, ignoring every thing and everyone and closed himself up in his office, burying himself in paperwork so he wouldn't have to think about it. That's where his son found him six hours later, his feet propped up on the desk and a scotch on the rocks in his hand.

 

“Dad?” Rory knocked on the door before tentatively opening it up and stepping inside the room. When he saw Niall he looked at him suspiciously for a minute and asked him if he was drunk.

 

Niall snorted derisively and took his feet down off the desk, electing to rest his forearms there instead “I literally just made this drink. I've had one sip so no, I am most certainly _not_ drunk.”

 

“Okay. Sorry,” Rory said sheepishly “Harry called me. He's frantic.”

 

“Is he?” Niall asked indifferently.

 

“Um...yeah,” Rory looked confused “He's been trying to call you for hours and you're not answering. He's worried about you.”

 

“I'll call him later.” Niall says calmly “I don't want you worrying about me and Harry.”

 

“Alright. Let me at least text him to tell him you're fine.” Rory lifted his hand with his phone in it and was already tapping at the screen before Niall could say anything. When he was done, he looked up at Niall again “I'm sorry for being a brat.”

 

“You were a brat,” Niall nodded his head slowly “But I was wrong too. I shouldn't have lost my cool that way. I've made things so much worse. I'm sure I referred to you as my son about fifty times while I was yelling at those paps so now everyone knows who you are. It was only a matter of time but it certainly could have been handled better.”

 

“You were just trying to protect me. It's pretty shitty that they came to my school. I know I was angry at first but once I calmed down I understood what you were doing. I don't care that everyone knows who I am now. I knew it would happen eventually. I also know you and Harry will take care of me and make sure I can just be a normal teenager, same as Zee's parents do for him.” Rory said “It's okay.”

 

“You're a good kid ya know? And you're right, me and Harry will do whatever we can to make things easier for you.” Niall says “It's been a long day huh?”

 

“Yeah. I'm going to bed. As long as we're alright?” Rory questioned.

 

Niall smiled and stood up from his desk, walking around it to wrap his son up in a hug “Yeah. We're definitely alright. We'll always be alright. I love you.”

 

“I love you, too.” Rory replied “Goodnight.”

 

“Goodnight.”

 

Niall went upstairs to his and Harry's bedroom not long after Rory went to his room. He took a long shower to ease some of the tension in his muscles, then brushed his teeth and climbed into bed just after eleven. It was still afternoon in LA, Harry was probably working, but he decided to call him anyway. Needing to make things right with his husband before he went to sleep. Fighting with Harry was one of the worst feelings in the world.

 

He didn't call, however. He couldn't do it. He was still so, so hurt and was in no frame of mind to talk to his husband. So he texted him instead, letting him know he was going to bed and he was fine, not to worry, then he threw his phone onto the nightstand and fell asleep, not bothering to see if Harry texted back.

 

~~~

 

 

 Niall could see it was just after four in the morning when he was startled awake by arms wrapping around his waist and a warm body pressed up against his back. He didn't panic. He knew it was Harry, could smell his cologne and shampoo, could feel his long hair tickling his cheek.

 

“Harry...?” Niall whispered into the dark “You're supposed to be in LA for four more days.”

 

“Shh,” Harry murmured in his ear, the arm he had around Niall's waist tightening a bit “Just let me hold you for a bit. Please.”

 

Niall didn't say anything, just brought one of his hands up to rest against the one Harry had on his waist, lacing their fingers and squeezing lightly. He could feel Harry's exhaled breath against his neck at the gesture and he knew it was what Harry needed right now. To be reassured they were okay.

 

Niall let half an hour pass before he spoke into the dark again, his voice soft and rough from sleep “What are you doing here?”

 

Harry sighed against Niall's neck and Niall could feel him swallow a few times before he spoke “After you hung up on me I was so angry with myself. I tried to reach you for an hour but you weren't answering so I called Jeff and asked if I could use his company jet to come home. It wasn't in use so he arranged it and in a couple of hours I was in the air. I landed an hour ago.”

 

“But why?” Niall asked “You were working. I needed some time. I would have texted you eventually.”

 

“I fucked up, Niall,” Harry said, his voice hoarse. Niall knew he had started crying because he felt the hot tears hitting his neck “I fucked up and I knew it as soon as you hung up on me.”

 

Niall was silent for awhile, trying to gather his thoughts. Harry upset and crying broke Niall's heart and it took every ounce of strength he had not to give in and let Harry off the hook. Niall was hurting too and at some point he had to look after himself.

 

“You did, yeah,” Niall answered finally “You fucked up. You- I needed you, Harry. I needed you to be on my side and you weren't.”

 

Harry started crying harder and Niall couldn't take it. Couldn't handle feeling Harry's body shaking against his. He reached over and turned on the lamp on the nightstand and gently extricated himself from Harry's hold, getting up out of the bed and grabbing a jumper from the closet to put on with his boxers. When he left the closet and came back into the room, Harry was standing as well, tears running down his cheeks and his fingers nervously running through his hair.

 

“You didn't even stop to let me tell you what happened. You just started going off on me. You have no idea the shit I went through before you called. First I had to stand in the foyer while my son yelled at me for going off on the paps, then I had to endure half an hour of your publicist telling me everything I did wrong and berating me, then you called and I thought it would be okay. Just hearing your voice would calm me down. Getting to talk it out with you would calm me down. All I got, though, was you yelling at me just like everybody else.” Niall could feel his eyes filling with tears and blinked rapidly to hold them back.

 

“I'm sorry, Niall,” Harry choked out “I'm so sorry. I know I fucked up. I know I did. Could you just- could you listen to me for a minute? Let me explain myself?”

 

“Why?” Niall folded his arms over his chest “So I can listen to you tell me how disappointed you are in me for losing my cool?”

 

“No!” Harry shouted, a look of horror on his face “ _No_ , Niall. That's not true. I'm not disappointed in you. I'm proud of you.”

 

“Oh right,” Niall scoffed “Sounded like it.”

 

“Please let me explain, Niall. Just give me five minutes? Please.” Harry begged.

 

“Yeah,” Niall sighed “It's not like I'll get back to sleep. I have to be up for work in an hour anyway.”

 

“Thank you,” Harry said, taking a deep breath and wiping tears off his face with his fingers “Okay. When Louis showed me that video I panicked, Niall, and not for the reasons you're probably thinking.”

 

“What? That you're ashamed of me? That I embarrassed you? That I made you look bad and now your image is in danger?” Niall sneered.

 

“Baby,” Harry held his hands out at his sides helplessly “I could never be ashamed of you or embarrassed by you. You're- baby, you're my husband, my partner for life, my everything. I'm so proud of you. I'm proud of your accomplishments, I'm proud of how well you're doing with Rory, I'm proud of the person you are, I'm proud to have you next to me when we go to parties or award shows. I couldn't be prouder of you. Why else do you think my social media is filled with pictures of you and us together? I love that everyone knows you're my husband, that you picked _me_ , that you love _me_. So, no, I didn't panic because of that and I certainly didn't panic over my image.”

 

“Oh really?” Niall glared at Harry “Because your image is all your publicist yelled about for half an hour.”

 

“Fuck my publicist!” Harry brought a hand up to his forehead, holding it there while he took some deep breaths, then dropping it again “It's her job to worry about my image. She was just doing her job. I could care less about it. I've been in this business for ten years. I've made a name for myself. If people are going to stop listening to my music just because my husband yelled at some paps then I don't really want them listening to my music anyway.”

 

“Okay,” Niall threw his hands up, clearly exasperated “If those aren't the reasons you panicked, what are?”

 

“I panicked and ripped into you because you kept telling the paps to stay away from your son. I knew it was only a matter of time before they realized the boy they kept seeing us with is your son. They were standing outside the school for a reason, Niall. They were trying to figure out who he is and you just stormed up and gave them all the information they needed. I was furious at first and then I started to panic because I knew things would be rocky for a bit. You'd get hounded all the time, Rory probably would too. Your lives are going to be crazy until all this calms down and I just- I don't want you to go through that. I want to protect you. I always want to protect you and now that we have Rory my need to protect you and him has only gotten stronger. I can't really explain it but- Niall, I love that boy with everything I've got and I want to protect him fiercely. I would do anything for him. I would do anything for _you_. You must know that. Have I not shown you how important you both are to me? Because I meant too. I thought I did but obviously it wasn't enough.” Harry finished sadly.

 

“I'm sorry,” Niall started sobbing, covering his face with his hands, his body visibly deflating, all the fight leaving his body. “It was enough. Of course it was. You show me everyday how much you love us. You're so, so good to us. I don't know why I didn't...”

 

“It's okay,” Harry walked up to Niall and circled his wrists with his fingers, gently pulling Niall's hands away from his face. When Niall looked up, he could see Harry was crying just as much as he was and his heart felt like it was being ripped out. The past twelve hours have been fucked up and this is what it led to, both of them hurting and crying at almost five in the fucking morning.

 

“It's not okay, Harry,” Niall went easily when Harry wrapped his arms around him and guided him into his chest “I should have known better than to think you were ashamed of me or something. I _do_ know better. I guess I was just too hurt and angry to see it.”

 

“You had every right to feel that way Niall. I didn't know what you'd gone through with Rory and my publicist but that doesn't excuse me ripping into you because I was worried. It was stupid and immature of me. I'm so sorry.” Harry said, pressing kiss after kiss after kiss to the top of Niall's head.

 

“It was such a shit day. I just want to forget it and hope today will be better.” Niall sighed against Harry's chest.

 

“We can do that.” Harry says “Do you forgive me?”

 

Niall snorted into Harry's shirt and tipped his head back to look at him “You're an idiot.”

 

Harry grinned, his dimples deepening in his cheeks “I'm going to take that as a yes.”

 

Niall tipped his head up a bit and fit his lips against Harry's, the horrible feeling he had in his stomach and chest disappearing as soon as their lips touched. Harry loved him and as long as they continued to talk things through like this, they would always be okay.

 

“Is Rory okay?” Harry asked when their lips parted. “I was on the plane when I called and spoke to him. He told me what went on between you two. He said he was a brat. He used much more colourful words, mind you. He's definitely Irish and he's definitely your son.”

 

“Shut up,” Niall pinched Harry's waist making him squirm “I have a lovely, innocent mouth.”

 

“Oh my God!” Harry squawked, his high pitched laughter filling their bedroom “That's- that's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. After the things your mouth has done to me over the past four years, you think it's innocent? Lovely, yes. I quite like your mouth. I really, really, like your mouth. Innocent...no fucking way.”

 

“I'm well aware of where my mouth has been, thank you,” Niall giggled at his husband laughing “But to answer your question, I think he's okay. I mean, we're okay, me and him, but I don't know what he'll face in school tomorrow.”

 

“The usual probably. Kids whispering because he knows a 'famous' person blah blah blah,” Harry rolls his eyes “I'm more concerned with keeping the media away from him. I want him to live his life and enjoy his teenage years, not be hounded by paps all the time.”

 

“We'll figure it out. We just need to make sure we keep communicating with each other and with him. He really needs to understand he can trust us and can tell us things so we can help him,” Niall says, fighting through a yawn.

 

“Sorry I woke you,” Harry smiled sheepishly.

 

“It's okay. I'll probably just go to bed early tonight.” Niall tells him.

 

“I'll be right there with you,” Harry smiled “I checked in on Rory before I came up here, by the way. He was sleeping spread out across the bed like a starfish and half the duvet was on the floor. It was so cute.”

 

“Yeah, he's cute,” Niall grinned, thinking about his son “He's settling in here. Feeling more and more comfortable all the time I think.”

 

“Well he walks around in his boxers in the morning so I'm going to say he's comfortable,” Harry snorted.

 

“I swear he should be _your_ son with his propensity to be naked or almost naked,” Niall laughed.

 

“Ah well,” Harry laughed “As long as he's got clothes on when we have guests.”

 

Niall rolled his eyes and stepped back a bit, lifting his arms above his head to stretch “I may as well have a shower now instead of later. You must be exhausted. You should try and get some sleep.”

 

“I've got all day to sleep while you're working and Rory is at school. I'll make you breakfast and coffee while you're in the shower.” Harry kissed Niall chastely on the lips “Love you.”

 

“I love you, too,” Niall said back, then he headed for the en suite, pulling his jumper over his head as he went.

 

 

~~~

 

 

It was on a Friday morning in the middle of April when Rory came downstairs with his bag for school and also an overnight bag.

 

“Going somewhere?” Niall lifted an eyebrow at his son, his coffee cup frozen in the air half way to his mouth.

 

“I am actually.” Rory said as he grabbed the orange juice from the fridge and popped a bagel in the toaster.

 

“Excuse me?” Niall sits up straight, getting a bit alarmed at this point “Harry,” Niall turned to his husband “Did you know about this? Have you two planned a trip or something?”

 

“No,” Harry said slowly, quietly laying his knife back down on the table.

 

“Rory, I don't know what you're playing at but-”

 

“Dad. Relax.” Rory laughed as he was buttering his bagel “I'm not going far. I'm staying the weekend at Zee's.”

 

“Without asking us first? That's a bit disrespectful isn't it? And where at Zee's? His Dad's or his Mum's?” Niall stared at his son disapprovingly.

 

“His Mum's and I didn't ask because it was a surprise.” Rory said, matter of fact.

 

“A surprise?” Harry furrowed his brow “This is getting a bit strange.”

 

Rory sighed and plopped himself down on a chair at the table “Honestly Dad, Harry. It's your one year wedding anniversary tomorrow is it not? This is my present to you. I'll be gone all weekend which means you two can shag all over the house if you want.”

 

Harry's eyes widened and he comically choked on his tea as he started laughing. Niall tried not to join in but he couldn't help it. Rory was right after all. They probably would shag everywhere.

 

“Alright,” Niall said through his laughter “As long as you know you don't have to do this. We were just going to go to dinner somewhere and then come back with you.”

 

“That's a terrible one year anniversary,” Rory frowned “Go out to dinner, sure, but stay out if you want, go to a club, do whatever. Just have fun and don't worry about me. Zee's Mum is cool.”

 

Niall nodded and reached over to brush his sons hair back off his forehead “Thank you. This is really sweet of you. I'll let it slide since you were doing this as a gift to us but if you try to do this without asking us any other time, you won't be going, I can tell you that.”

 

“Understood,” Rory said “I won't see you until Sunday night so happy anniversary Dad. I hope you have a good one.”

 

Niall stood up and kissed his son on the forehead before leaning down for a quick hug “Thank you. I love you.” Niall gathered his suit jacket so he could head to work “I'll be calling Gwen on my way to work, to make sure she's okay with this. Zuma better not have invited you over without asking.”

 

“He didn't,” Rory laughed “I love you, too. Have a nice day at work.”

 

Niall smiled and ducked down to kiss Harry goodbye, telling him he loves him before exiting the kitchen and gathering his keys and briefcase to head to work.

 

 ~~~

 

Harry wasn't wasting any time in starting the anniversary celebrations.

 

When Niall walked through the door at five-thirty that evening, he promptly found Harry fucking himself with a dildo on the living room couch.

 

“ _Jesus Christ_ ,” Niall gasped, dropping his briefcase to the floor with a loud bang “Holy-”

 

“Hey love,” Harry said breathlessly, arching his back and throwing his head back a bit when he twists the dildo inside him.

 

“ _God._ Fuck. How long have you been here like this?” Niall gestures toward his husband spread out over the couch.

 

“Started after you texted to tell me you were leaving the office,” Harry panted.

 

“ _Fuck_ ,” Niall cursed again and finally sprung into action. He stalked across the room toward Harry while trying to remove his tie, almost choking himself when he didn't untie it enough “I told you you were gonna kill me one day, didn't I? Nearly choked to death on me tie.”

 

Harry giggled and reached out for Niall, his fingers going to the button and zipper of his trousers to help Niall along “I want you so bad, Niall. I've been thinking about you all day.”

 

Niall groaned as his fingers fumbled over the buttons of his dress shirt and by the time he got it half undone he was so frustrated he just ripped it the rest of the way off, not caring about it since he had tons of shirts.

 

“Oh my God,” Harry spluttered, throwing his head back and cackling “Does this remind you of something?”

 

Niall drops his trousers down over his legs, kicking them away then doing the same with his boxers until he was completely naked and rapidly getting hard for his husband. He smirked when he realized what Harry was talking about and chuckled as he straddled Harry on the couch, one of his hands slipping between Harry's legs to remove the dildo and throw it onto the floor “Yes. I do recall the night we got together as a couple. I ripped your shirt off and told you to take it home and show Louis exactly how much fun I had removing it.”

 

“One of the best nights of my life, that.” Harry looked up at his husband, his cheeks flushed and sweat forming on his forehead. Niall thinks for the one millionth time that Harry is the most gorgeous man he's ever seen.

 

“How many times have I come home to find you like this, hmm?” Niall slides his hands up over Harry's abs and chest, stopping them on his shoulders “Still gets me every time though. Still makes my heart beat out of my chest. I've got my very own little minx.”

 

Harry grinned and slid his hands around Niall's neck, sliding them up into his hair and lightly scratching at his scalp “Remember that time I was on tour and you called me on Skype at the time we specified?”

 

“Yes! For fucks sake,” Niall groaned “You answered while you were fucking yourself with your fingers and I had a bowl of popcorn in my lap, thinking we'd just be having an innocent chat.”

 

Harry snorted and shook his head back and forth a couple times “I'll never forget seeing the bowl of popcorn going flying everywhere. I laughed so loud one of my security guys heard me down the hall.”

 

“You're lucky I love you so much or I would have been very mad about wasting a whole bowl of popcorn. You know how I love my food,” Niall smirked.

 

“Yeah. I know I'm lucky,” Harry said seriously and just like that there was a shift in the air. They went from being playful and joking around, to serious and frantic, their lips meeting in a passionate kiss and their bodies grinding against each other, desperate to get off. “Fuck me, Niall. Right now. Please. I don't want to wait. I'm already opened up, the lube is on the table. _Please_.”

 

“God. Yeah. Yeah, I'll fuck you,” Niall reached out to grab the lube off the table, thankful Harry thought to cover the couch with a towel to protect it from come and lube. He poured some lube in his hand and wrapped his hand around his cock, pumping it a few times and covering it in lube. “Ready?”

 

“So fucking ready,” Harry said, biting his lip and lifting his legs up to wrap them around Niall's back. “Want it hard, baby. Hard as you can.”

 

Niall made a noise like a growl, then guided his cock to Harry's arse, sliding in inch by inch until he was all the way in. He closed his eyes for a moment, relishing the feeling of Harry's tight heat around him, his fingers digging into Harry's thighs “You'll get it hard, darlin'. As hard as you want. As long as I get to go slow later. I want to kiss every part of your body then go back and do it all over again.”

 

Harry nodded repeatedly, his tongue coming out to lick over his bottom lip “Yeah. I want that, too. I want to do everything with you. I love you so much.”

 

Niall bent down over Harry to kiss him, his body moving forward and shifting his cock around inside Harry. Harry gasped into the kiss and started to jerk his hips, desperately wanting Niall to move. Niall obliges, pulling out and pushing back in again, building up a rhythm until he's slamming hard into Harry- so hard the couch moves a couple inches and knocks into the end table sending a lamp crashing to the floor. Harry and Niall both freeze, Niall's cock buried deep in Harry and Harry's fingers digging hard into Niall's back.

 

“Oops,” Niall manages to say before he and Harry both dissolve into laughter, laughing so hard tears gather in their eyes.

 

“We- we are so screwed when Rory gets home,” Harry laughs loudly, his eyes lit up with mirth.

 

“Maybe he won't notice?” Niall gasps out, not really believing a word of what he's saying.

 

“Yeah right. He's your son. He's going to be walking around here, gleefully torturing us for weeks about this.” Harry says confidently.

 

“Well then...” Niall rolls his hips and starts fucking into Harry again “If that's the case, we might as well break the other lamp during round two.”

 

Harry splutters out a disbelieving sound, then throws his head back against the arm of the couch alternating between cackling with laughter and moaning until he comes hard, gasping and grabbing at Niall's back until he rides out his orgasm. Niall comes inside him a minute later, then collapses down on top of Harry, dissolving into a fit of giggles.

 

“Oh my God,” Harry chortles “How do we keep having such hot, mind blowing sex, even when we're giggling like children?”

 

Niall's breath comes out in short puffs, hot against Harry's neck as his laughter starts to die down “Dunno. We just always have fun together. I love it. I love you.”

 

“Yeah?” Harry's tongue pokes into his cheek as he winds his arms around Niall's neck “Do you love me enough to go get a wet cloth to clean the come dripping out of my arse?”

 

“Considering I made the mess in your arse, I think I can manage to clean you up.” Niall smirked. He leaned in for a quick kiss and pulled slowly out of Harry so he could untangle himself from Harry's body and run to the bathroom down the hall for a cloth.

 

When he comes back, he cleans Harry up as best he can then he unplugs the broken lamp (just in case) and lays back down on the couch with Harry, pulling the blanket that's draped over the back of the couch down over them. “I'll get rid of that lamp later.”

 

“Mmm,” Harry hums and pulls Niall close to him, Niall's head resting against his chest “You hungry? I figured we'd just get take away tonight. Whatever you want.”

 

“Pizza,” Niall answers immediately “With fifty tons of extra cheese. Need to keep our stamina up for tonight.”

 

“Baby, if we get fifty tons of cheese on our pizza, we won't be alive to have any stamina left.”

 

“Yeah but it'd taste so good wouldn't it?” Niall lifts his head just enough to smirk at Harry then drops it again, nuzzling his cheek against Harry's pecs.

 

Harry rolled his eyes, his hand sliding down and pinching one of Niall's arse cheeks “Cheeky bugger.”

 

Niall jumped at the touch and broke out into what Harry likes to call his Niall laugh, loud, gleeful, and very infectious. Harry couldn't help but laugh with him while he reached a hand out to grab Niall's trousers, fishing his phone out of his pocket.

 

“You want the usual?” Harry asked, tapping in Niall's passcode and going into the app to order. Niall nodded and Harry tapped around a few times until the order was done and he laid Niall's phone back on the floor. “Hey.”

 

“Hmm?” Niall hummed, his index finger tracing patterns over Harry's abs.

 

“I got you something while I was out today. For our anniversary. More like I did something.” Harry says, carding his fingers through Niall's soft hair.

 

“Oh?” Niall's finger stops tracing “What did you do?”

 

“I got a new tattoo.”

 

“What?” Niall lifts his head in confusion “How did I not see a bandage on you?”

 

“You were kind of busy from the very moment you walked in the door this evening,” Harry smirks “Not sure you saw anything but my lovely pink dildo.”

 

Niall snorted “And oh did I ever see it.” Niall laughed, his eyes roaming over Harry's body, stopping on Harry's right bicep “Oh. Jesus. That's pretty noticeable. You and your dildo are even more distracting than I thought. Come on. What is it? Let's see it.”

 

Harry reached up to remove the bandage, his eyes never leaving Niall's face, so he could see his reaction “Well, on our one year anniversary as a couple, I got the date we first met in the chatroom tattooed on my arm. Then when we got married I got that date tattooed right under it. Two of the most important days of my life.”

 

“Did you add another date?” Niall wondered, stretching his neck to try and see as the last bit of bandage came off Harry's arm.

 

“I did. Another very important date that changed my life forever in the best possible way. Two dates actually.” Harry bit his lip, finally turning his arm so Niall could see.

 

The moment Niall saw it, he knew exactly what it was and he gasped, his baby blue eyes widening and his perfect pink lips dropped open like he can't believe what he's seeing “Harry...fuck. That's-”

 

“The day we found out for sure that Rory is your son,” Harry finished for him, his voice barely above a whisper. “And below that is-”

 

“The day he was born,” Niall choked out, one of his hands coming up to cover his mouth “The day he was born. Oh God, Harry. You're-”

 

“Do you like it?” Harry asked, reaching up to remove Niall's hand from over his mouth so he could lean in and kiss his lips.

 

“You're incredible,” Niall gushes, throwing his arms around Harry's neck “Every time I think you can't possibly do anything sweeter than all the things you've done for me since we met, you go and prove me wrong. You keep- you keep making me fall in love with you over and over again and falling in love with you is the best thing I've ever done. That and helping to make my beautiful son, even if I didn't get to raise him.”

 

“I'm glad you like it,” Harry pulls back from their hug and looks at Niall almost shyly “I wanted to do something special for you. Being married to you and falling in love with you is the greatest thing _I've_ ever done so...”

 

“Even though you have several number one albums and three sold out stadium tours under your belt? Oh and let's not forget the Grammy you won.” Niall teases.

 

“I'm proud of all that but if it disappeared tomorrow, if I woke up to find out it never happened, I wouldn't care. I'm more proud of you and Rory and this really great life we're building together. It makes me really, really, happy, Niall. The happiest I've ever been.”

 

“I love you,” Niall says with a laugh “Even if you have made me a sap.”

 

“I love you, too,” Harry pauses for a moment “Do you think Rory will like it?”

 

“Yeah. Yeah I do,” Niall says confidently “He adores you, ya know. I can see it all over his face. The first time you came to one of his football matches after you finished off your last tour, his face lit up like a Christmas tree. It meant a lot to him that you came even though you could have gotten recognized and ended up having to deal with people swarming you.”

 

“I'd do anything for him,” Harry says softly, his fingers running absentmindedly up and down Niall's arm “I'd do anything for his Dad, too. The two of you are so special. Two bright lights in my life. I can't imagine my life without you both.”

 

“Hopefully you'll never have to imagine it,” Niall smiles at Harry “I think I should probably put some clothes on so I an answer the door. The pizza should be here any minute.”

 

“Okay,” Harry followed Niall up off the couch, finding his boxers on the floor and pulling them up over his legs “I'm going to get us some beers to go with the pizza. We can eat in here.”

 

“Sounds good,” Niall reaches down to grab Harry's t-shirt from the floor, pulling it over his head. He put his work trousers back on and ran a hand through his hair, just as the bell rang, letting them know someone was at the gate. Harry calls out from the kitchen that it's the pizza and that he buzzed the guy in, so Niall grabs his wallet and heads to the foyer, opening up the door just as the guy is getting out of his car. He smiles at the guy, takes the pizza and hands him the money, then says goodnight and shuts and locks the door behind him.

 

“Hey,” Harry says when Niall walks into the living room with the pizza, laying it on the table “I was thinking and what if we rented a boat to take us out on the Thames tomorrow night after dinner? We can bring a blanket and sit back and cuddle while enjoying the beautiful city we live in. It looks so good at night all lit up.”

 

“That sounds lovely, H,” Niall smiles wide at his husband “Proper romantic. Do you think you can arrange it on such short notice?”

 

“My PA can do anything. I think she's magic or something,” Harry laughed “I'll text her after we eat.”

 

“Alright,” Niall says “Can you believe tomorrow will be one year? One year ago we were in Brazil at that beautiful resort and I was marrying the love of my life. I don't think a day goes by that I don't think about that day. It was amazing. Gemma did a good job with the planning, the resort staff went above and beyond for us and our families were there. The most important people in the world to us.”

 

“Yeah. It was incredible,” Harry said wistfully “I miss it- the resort. Brazil is so pretty. We have to go back someday.”

 

“I knew you'd want that. That's why it's my present to you.” Niall put his slice of pizza down and wiped his hands in a napkin so he could bring his hands up to Harry's cheeks “I've arranged it all. Even spoke with Gabriel, the manager, and he remembered us. He said he can't wait to see us again and he promised to make our stay just as good as the last one.”

 

“Really?” Harry's face lit up “Niall! Oh my God! When are we going? I can't wait!”

 

“End of June,” Niall tells him with a smile “It would have been great to go this week since it's our actual anniversary but we have Rory now and I didn't want to leave him while he's in school. I know Mum would drive down to stay with him but I just didn't feel right about it for some reason. So I figured we could wait until he's out of school for the Summer. He mentioned he'd like to go see Bobby and Theo in Ireland and I thought he could go then.”

 

“I think he'll be happy about that. He talks to Theo and Bobby all the time doesn't he? They'll be happy to have him.” Harry said.

 

“Bobby is already losing his mind over it. I called to make sure the last week of June is good for him and I think he had their whole week planned by the time we hung up. Just him and his two grandsons.”

 

“This is- this is so great, Niall. I'm so glad you thought of it. We should do it every year if we can.” Harry leans in to kiss Niall, his lips tasting like pizza sauce “Thank you.”

 

“You're welcome, darlin'”Niall said “Now lets finish this pizza. I believe you said I could kiss every inch of your body tonight.”

 

“I'm counting on it,” Harry says before taking a huge bite of pizza and grinning at Niall like a little kid. “I'm definitely counting on it.”

 

 

~~~

 

 

 The next six months of their lives are pretty calm. Rory finished school in June and continued settling in with Niall and Harry. He fit in so well with them it's like he was always there and Niall and Harry absolutely adored having him there.

 

At the end of June, Rory happily went off to Ireland with Bobby and Theo while Niall and Harry went back to the resort where they were married. The staff all remembered them and welcomed them with big smiles on their faces, many of them thanking Harry and Niall for the generous gratuity they received once the wedding was over and the guests had all cleared out. In turn, Niall and Harry gave them all hugs and thanked them for making their wedding so special.

 

After that, the staff made sure they always had everything they needed during their stay. They were taken care of like royalty and were able to spend their week spending their days on the beach tanning and swimming, playing tennis on the oceanfront tennis courts, getting couples massages, and taking romantic walks around the resort. At night, they ate delicious meals at the resort restaurant, then they'd head to the bar next to the restaurant and have drinks and dance until the wee hours of the morning. Once back in their bungalow, their clothes were never long being torn off and they were all over each other, hands and mouths roaming over hard bodies, loud moans and breathy calls of each others names filling the bungalow along with the quiet sounds of the water lapping against the deck outside.

 

It was an amazing holiday and they left happy and sated, promising Gabriel they'd be back again the next year.

 

From there they headed to Ireland to pick Rory up from Bobby's and to spend a few days there themselves. When they arrived, they found Bobby in his kitchen with Rory and Theo, the three of them singing along to the radio and cleaning a pile of fish they must have caught that morning.

 

It was an amazing sight to see, his son bonding with his father and his nephew. Niall couldn't keep the smile off his face the whole time they were there. Rory fit in seamlessly, like he'd been in the family since birth, and late one night before Niall joined Harry in bed, he hugged his father tight and thanked him for welcoming Rory with open arms. He also thanked his father for being so good to him his whole life. It was his example Niall was following and so far he thought he was doing a pretty good job of being a father to Rory.

 

When it was time to head back to England, Rory asked if he could stay longer, surprising Niall and Harry and making Bobby's cheeks pink up, clearly enjoying the fact that his grandson had such a good time he asked to stay longer.

 

Niall and Harry agreed. Rory was almost sixteen and more than capable of taking the flight home on his own so they told him to let them know when he was ready to come back and he told them he'd be back soon since he didn't want to be away from his friends for his birthday in July.

 

Every thing was great. Every month that went by, they got closer and closer as a family and Niall and Harry were seriously considering finally getting around to adopting a baby like they always planned. They had told Mrs. Gibson at the adoption agency to take their profile out of circulation for awhile, deciding they wanted to focus on Rory and not be heartbroken if she called to say there was a baby for them they'd have to turn down. By October, they had decided to give her a call and tell her they were ready to go ahead again but before they had a chance, all hell broke loose with Niall's family.

 

Harry was cooking dinner and listening to the finished tracks Ed had for his album when Niall came home from work looking pale and beyond stressed out.

 

“Niall?” Harry frowns and reaches to turn the burners off on the stove then turns back around to face Niall “Are you okay? Did something happen at work?”

 

Niall sighs and rubs a hand over his face while walking out of the kitchen and into their large dining room where their liquor cabinet was. He pulls out a bottle of whiskey and pours some into a glass, knocking it back before pouring another while Harry watches on worriedly.

 

“Work was fine,” Niall finally speaks. He's put his glass down for now and was busy pulling his shirt out of his trousers and taking his tie off, unbuttoning the first few buttons on his dress shirt, revealing his chest hair “I didn't actually get to do any work today though so...”

 

“Why?” Harry asks, stepping in front of Niall and brushing his thumb over his cheek.

 

“Where's Rory?” Niall asks, stepping forward into Harry's touch and wrapping his arms around the taller man's waist.

 

“At Tyler's. They're working on a physics project. He's staying for dinner and I said I'd pick him up by eight.” Harry wraps his own arms around Niall's waist and kisses the top of his head “Is everything alright?”

 

“No,” Niall laughs humorlessly “Not really.”

 

“Tell me about it?” Harry's hand starts moving up and down over Niall's back at a soothing pace. His other hand is at the nape of Niall's neck, playing with Niall's hair.

 

“Do you remember two years ago when you came home from promoting your album? The night I proposed to you?” Niall starts.

 

“Of course I do. One of the best nights of my life.” Harry can't help but smile at the memory.

 

“Well do you remember something was bothering me and I told you about it the next day?” Niall asks.

 

“Yes,” Harry hums “Your Mum's sister was having trouble with her daughter and your Mum was really upset about it.”

 

“Yeah. She got in with the wrong crowd and her drug dealing boyfriend had her brainwashed to think only he loved her and her family was only out to get them.” Niall sounds disgusted “Well apparently the minute she turned eighteen she left her parents house and took off with him. My Aunt and Uncle called the police but she's legal, they can't force her to stay.”

 

“They were never able to get through to her. That's so sad,” Harry frowns “She's throwing her life away with a guy like that.”

 

“Oh she knows the difference now. She knows he was playing her all along,” Niall steps back to take another drink from his glass of whiskey “She found out by getting pregnant. She didn't tell him at first, just wore baggy clothes but by the time she was five months along, he started to realize she was pregnant and not just gaining weight. He sent her home to her parents with her face beaten black and blue, a laceration over her scalp and bruises all over the rest of her body. He beat the shit out of her and then sent her on her way. Told her to never come back.”

 

“Oh my God!” Harry's mouth dropped open in shock “Holy fuck, Niall. Is she okay? Is the baby okay? Did the baby make it?”

 

“Surprisingly the baby is fine. I don't know how, since it seems like he tried to beat it out of her but it's fine. Well, except for the fact it's father is a drug dealer and it's mother doesn't want it.” Niall practically snarls as he throws back more whiskey.

 

“She doesn't want her own baby?” Harry looks at Niall in shock “That's- that's terrible.”

 

“She'd be a horrible parent anyway,” Niall says, his expression turning sad “She hasn't even finished high school, she dropped out and she does drugs herself. She has no means to take care of a baby. Especially a baby who will probably need a lot of attention. A baby who will come out of the womb probably going through withdrawal.”

 

“Oh my God. That poor baby. He or she is innocent in all this but probably the one who'll suffer the most.” Harry blinks rapidly, trying to keep the tears building up in his eyes from falling.

 

“That's the worst part,” Niall says, his voice breaking “Babies are so precious. God only knows what her drug use has done to it. I care for my cousin, I do, but her crappy life is all her own fault. I'm most upset about the baby.”

 

“What's going to happen to it? Are her parents going to raise it?” Harry asks, a worried look on his face.

 

Niall shakes his head sadly “No. They had my cousin late in life. They're both almost sixty and my uncle has serious health issues. My aunt is run ragged just trying to take care of him. They couldn't handle a baby. My aunt is devastated. She wants to be in her grandchild's life but the only option right now is looking like adoption. My mother is also devastated. She's really close to her sister and my cousin is her goddaughter. She called me this morning, hysterical. It took ages for me to calm her down enough to tell me anything. I thought something had happened to Greg or Bobby or Theo but I couldn't get anything coherent out of her so I had to use my office phone to call Greg to see if anyone was hurt.”

 

“Oh Niall,” A tear finally slips out of Harry's eye and down over his cheek. He reaches out and wraps a hand around Niall's wrist and pulls him in close to him again, hugging him tight and repeatedly kissing his forehead “I'm so sorry baby. So sorry.”

 

“I hate this,” Niall sniffles into Harry's shirt “Part of me wants to stay out of it and not get involved in family drama but I can't just ignore Mum when she's upset. I can't ignore the fact that an innocent baby might end up with problems and will be put up for adoption, never to be seen by it's biological family again. I can't. No matter how much I want to.”

 

“Of course you can't. Your heart is too big. You care for people so much, especially your family.” Harry sways their bodies from side to side, trying to comfort his husband.

 

“Drugs, Harry. Who takes drugs knowing they'll end up in their babies system? Who does that?” Niall breaks down, sobbing. “Who does that to a baby? A sweet, innocent baby.”

 

“I don't know,” Harry's crying hard himself now “I don't know what she was thinking or if she was thinking at all. If she's only five months, maybe they can get her clean and the baby won't come into the world strung out.”

 

“I don't know how any of that works. She's in the hospital being treated and the baby is being monitored but I can't imagine her going through withdrawal will be good for the baby. Her body going through all that would only distress the baby, but what? Does the hospital just keep giving her drugs to keep her from going into withdrawal? I don't know. I don't know how it works.” Niall cries.

 

“Come on, baby,” Harry starts to lead his husband away from the dining room and toward the stairs “Forget dinner for now. I just need to hold you for awhile, yeah? Let's get in bed until I go pick up Rory. Let me take care of you please.”

 

Niall sniffles and nods his head, his fingers curled tight into Harry's shirt. He lets himself be led upstairs to their bedroom and he lets Harry strip him to his boxers, then he crawls into bed and lets Harry hold him while he cries himself to sleep.

 

 

 ~~~ 

 

 

Harry comes to him a month later, looking nervous but determined. It's late on a Friday night, after midnight, and they're getting ready for bed.

 

“Okay so...I need you to hear me out without freaking out okay?” Harry starts nervously. He's stopped changing for bed and is standing in the middle of their bedroom pacing, his feet and chest bare, his jeans still on but the button undone.

 

“That's...” Niall clears his throat “That's never a good way to start a conversation. What's wrong?”

 

“Nothing's wrong,” Harry stops pacing and stands at the foot of the bed wringing his hands together. Niall is sitting at the head of the bed with his back propped up against the headboard. “Just promise to hear me out without freaking out? Please?”

 

“Okay,” Niall nods his head slowly “I promise. Can you tell me what's going on now? You're scaring me a bit.”

 

“Sorry. Sorry,” Harry says quickly, looking sheepish “Okay. For the past month I've been doing a lot of thinking. I've spent a lot of time while you're at work and Rory is at school, doing research to make sure I have all the facts before I spoke to you. Niall. I think we should adopt your cousins baby” Harry pauses for a moment while a strangled sound leaves Niall's throat and he stares at Harry in disbelief “I don't just think we should. I want to. I want to adopt him or her.”

 

Niall doesn't speak for several minutes, just stares at Harry in disbelief as he takes deep breaths in and out to try and keep himself calm “Is there more? You wanted me to hear you out. I want to know if I'm done hearing you out so I can freak out.”

 

“Niall,” Harry sighs “Please don't. We talked about adopting right before all this happened with your family. You told me to call Mrs. Gibson and get the ball rolling again. We're ready to adopt. We're ready to have a baby. Why can't it be your cousins baby?”

 

“Because!” Niall threw his hands up in the air, his mouth still hanging open in the shape of an 'O' “Because- I-well-”

 

“Well what?” Harry asks from where he was staring down at Niall from the bottom of the bed.

 

“I just- I guess I never thought of it and I'm in a bit of shock right now.” Niall moves around on the bed pulling one of his knees up to rest under his chin.

 

“I know. I figured you hadn't thought of it. You've been too stressed trying to help your family. I've thought about it though. It's _all_ I've been able to think about. We're ready to adopt. Your cousin is putting the baby up for adoption. Why not adopt her baby then? Think about it Niall. This baby will have your blood running through it's veins. It'll be your second cousin. What about this _doesn't_ make sense?” Harry asked as he climbs onto the bed on his knees, resting on his shins in front of Niall.

 

“When you put it that way it sounds great but Harry...there are so many things to consider. First and foremost, who's to say my cousin will want us to raise her baby? Maybe she'd rather complete strangers so she'd never have to see or hear about her child. It might be too painful for her to keep the baby in the family.” Niall says carefully, his eyes moving around from side to side as everything runs through his head.

 

“Maybe. Maybe not,” Harry shrugged “You were a teenager when your cousin was born. You didn't grow up together. You were never close. We've been together five years and I've never met her. If she really doesn't want to know anything about her baby, she wouldn't have to. I would think she'd probably be happy to know her baby was with a family member though. Don't you think? Not to mention your Aunt and Uncle, your Mum. They'd get to be involved in the babies life.”

 

“I mean...” Niall scratches at the scruff on his chin “...it sounds great but, Harry, nothing is ever that easy. This baby could be born fine or with a lot of problems. It'll need a lot of attention. Have you even thought about that?”

 

“Of course I have,” Harry rolled his eyes “Your Mum told us your cousin was given Methadone as maintenance therapy to help her detox from the drugs she was taking. I've spent the past month doing so much research on the drug, I feel like I should be working for the company that produces it. I know all the risks. I know what issues this baby could be born with. My eyes are wide open and you know what? It doesn't bother me. I don't care what's wrong with this baby. I just want to be the one to hold it, love it, keep it safe, and help it through whatever it may face.”

 

Niall is quiet for a long while, his chin still resting on his knee and his eyes looking down, away from Harry. Harry knows he's thinking, going over it all in his head, so he waits quietly, letting his husband have the time he needs to put his head together.

 

“Can I have some time to think about this?” Niall finally looks up, the bright blue colour of his eyes still making Harry weak after five years together “I want to read all the information you've gathered. I want to know exactly what we could be facing before I make a decision. You and I should probably talk about it some more as well.”

 

“Yes. Yes Niall. Take some time to think about it all. I've bookmarked so many websites on my I-pad about all of this. I'll show you and you can read up on it all. Don't take too long though. There will be a lot of legal things to take care of if we go through with it. A lot of planning. We'd have to get everything we'd need for a baby.” Harry says gently.

 

“I won't take too long. I just need a few days.” Niall shared a small smile with Harry. “For right now, I want to go to bed. It's late and I'm exhausted. Work all day, then Rory's footie match. He was so good wasn't he? I swear he gets better as each month goes by.”

 

“He's brilliant!” Harry smiles wide, finally getting off the bed and taking his jeans off, slipping under the covers in just his boxers. He turns onto his side and Niall immediately brushes up against him, spooning him from behind like he always does. “I love watching him. The way he moves his feet. He's so quick. I'd fall on my face.”

 

“Yes. Yes you would,” Niall laughs lowly in Harry's ear “And I'd be right there getting it all on video.”

 

“Hey!” Harry's voice is laced with laughter as he shoves his bum back at Niall.

 

“Don't rub that arse around my cock. We'll never get to sleep tonight and I'm so tired.” Niall whines.

 

“Sorry baby,” Harry giggles into his pillow.

 

“But I will be having my way with it when we wake up in the morning. Count on it.” Niall says cheekily, planting a noisy kiss against Harry's neck.

 

“I will absolutely count on it,” Harry grins into his pillow “I love you, Ni. Goodnight.”

 

“I love you, too,” Niall says, pushing his body even more up against Harry's “Goodnight.”

 

 

 ~~~

 

 

Niall takes a week. He spends a lot of time reading everything Harry bookmarked and asking him questions about some of it since Harry's been at it for a month and has more information in his brain than Niall does on the subject.

 

The two of them also talk a lot. Serious talks. Having a baby is hard work in the best of times but it'll be ten times harder having a baby that could possibly have physical or mental challenges. Niall tells him if they do this and everything works out, they have to promise each other they'll always work as a team. That they'll always talk and communicate with each other. That they won't let frustrations come between them. That they'll always make time for each other no matter what.

 

Harry agreed with all of it, telling Niall he was one hundred percent committed to him and having a baby with him. No matter how hard it might get, he's in it for the long run.

 

So it's on the following Friday night when they're once again getting ready for bed that Niall says “Let's do it.”

 

Harry's head whips around from where he was looking for something in one of the dresser drawers and he stares at Niall with wide, hopeful eyes “Let's do it?”

 

“Yeah,” Niall nodded from his place on the bed “Let's talk to my cousin and see if we can make it work.”

 

“Really?” Harry abandons the drawer and leaps onto the bed making it bounce a few times.

 

“Yes really,” Niall laughs “We can do it. We're strong aren't we? Not only as people but as a couple. I think we can do this. I've never claimed to be perfect. _We're_ not perfect but I really believe we can give this child everything it needs. We will be great parents. We both have so much love to give, Harry. We can be just as good parents as any other couple so why not?”

 

“Yes! Exactly!” Harry threw his arms around Niall “We're just as good as anybody else and we're prepared. As prepared as we can be for this type of thing. We've done our research, we know it'll be hard work but we're not afraid of hard work. We're ready for this. We're going to love this baby with all our hearts. We'll give it a really good home. We'll give it a family. You, me, Rory and baby.”

 

Niall nodded and kissed Harry on the cheek, squeezing him hard “Yeah, darlin'.We'll be a family.”

 

“So. How do you want to go about it then?” Harry pulls back so he can look into Niall's eyes.

 

“Well, I was thinking we could talk to Rory about it tomorrow. Explain everything and make sure he's okay with it. We already talked to him about adopting and he was fine with it so I don't expect any issues from him but I still want to include him every step of the way.” Niall says, his fingers absentmindedly running up and down Harry's thigh. “Then I was thinking we could call Mum and get her opinion? She would have some idea on how my Aunt, Uncle and cousin might react.”

 

“That sounds like a good place to start,” Harry grins.

 

“Harry...” Niall starts “If this doesn't work out, will you be okay? I don't want you to get your hopes up only to be devastated later on.”

 

“I know. I know it's not a done deal. Far from it. I'll remain cautiously optimistic for now. If it doesn't work out I'll be disappointed for sure. I want this baby not only because it will be related to you but because it's going to have a rough start in this world and I want to be there and hold it, love it, nurture it. I want to give it all the attention it needs and deserves and I _can_ , I have nothing but time. I'm in a position to be a stay at home Dad for as long as it needs. There's no timetable for when I go back to work. I can make another album in five years, ten years, or never. It's wide open. I've had ten great years making albums and doing world tours. Now, I want to be a Dad, start a family. That's all I want.” Harry says passionately.

 

“You're going to be so good at it, darlin'. You were meant to be a Dad and I can't wait to be right there beside you watching every minute of it.” Niall grins at his husband.

 

“Yeah?” Harry looks down, a shy smile on his face “You think I was meant to be a Dad?”

 

“Without a doubt. You're a special person, Harry. I've known that since the moment I met you.” Niall says, reaching up to brush his thumb over Harry's cheek.

 

“Thank you,” Harry whispers “That means a lot to me. I'm so excited to finally be starting a family. Even if things don't work out with your cousin, we're still going to call the adoption agency to let them know to put us back on the list right?”

 

“Definitely,” Niall agrees “We definitely will.”

 

 ~~~

 

The next couple of months were crazy busy, to say the least. Harry and Niall spoke to Rory like they planned and he was okay with what they wanted to do, then they called Maura and she cried and cried, saying what a wonderful idea it was and how she'd been losing sleep worrying about her sweet, innocent niece or nephew and what would happen to them. She said she could sleep peacefully again if she knew the baby would go to Harry and Niall so she agreed to call her sister right away and let her know so she could speak to her husband and daughter.

 

It ended up being a lot easier than they anticipated. At least the part where they had to get Niall's cousin Jennifer to agree to let them adopt her baby. It turned out that the sweet, happy girl Jennifer was as a child didn't exist anymore. She had spent the past three years with a man who isolated her from her family, made her believe he was the only one who loved her, got her to turn on her family, got her hooked on drugs, and then beat her and threw her away like trash. According to her, her baby only reminded her of all that so she didn't care where her baby went, as long as it was gone.

 

Harry had been outraged that someone could talk about their own child in such a way but Niall calmed him down, telling him it wasn't worth getting angry over. Jennifer was signing her rights away and letting them adopt her baby. Once that baby was born, it would be with them and in good hands and that's all that mattered.

 

Once it was decided Harry and Niall would adopt the baby, they did everything by the book. There were a lot of legal issues that had to be dealt with, the adoption process was never a quick one, but they were assured everything would be in order by the time the baby came so that there would be no question of who got to make medical decisions if it came to that. As soon as the baby was born it would be Niall and Harry's and from there on out, they were the only ones to make decisions regarding their son or daughter.

 

While all this was going on, Niall was still working, they were still attending Rory's football matches and giving him as much of their attention as they always had, and Christmas was rapidly approaching. It was a crazy time but they thrived on it and wouldn't have it any other way.

 

It was the middle of December now, and Harry and Niall were getting excited for the birth of the baby in February. They had so much to do with buying everything a baby would need like a cot, change table, clothes, nappies, a pram, a car seat, bottles, blankets, etc.etc. They also had to paint the nursery and get it all set up. For that reason, Harry wanted to know the sex of the baby so they could plan the colours around that. He knew they could do neutral colours but he couldn't help wanting to make the room really girly if it were for a girl and really boyish if it were a boy.

 

They knew Jennifer hadn't bothered to ask the sex of the baby during her ultrasounds but it was noted in the file by the Doctor so the information wasn't hard to find out. They sat in their kitchen together, on speaker phone while the Doctor told them, tears falling down Harry's cheeks before the Doctor even opened his mouth.

 

It was a boy. They were going to have another son and for the rest of the day they alternated between laughing and crying, so overjoyed by the news. Their whole family was, especially Rory. He immediately had plans to teach his brother all about football and claimed that by the time he was ready to retire from professional football, his baby brother would be ready to start.

 

It was a very real possibility, as they found out right before school closed for the Christmas break. Niall and Harry had gotten a call from Rory's coach, asking them to come in for a chat before the term ended. They set up a meeting immediately, curious on what it could be about, knowing it couldn't be anything bad. Not with Rory.

 

“Mr. Horan, Mr. Styles-Horan, come in, come in,” The coach ushered them into his office on an afternoon after school.

 

“I think we told you to call us Niall and Harry,” Niall shook the coaches hand, chuckling slightly.

 

“You did. Sorry about that. It's habit to refer to students parents that way.” The coach said as he sat down in his desk chair after offering them water or tea. “Now. I want to get right to it. I've called you here today to give you a heads up that Rory will be getting approached by some football clubs in the new year. They've been coming to matches and watching him since school started in September but I didn't say anything because I didn't want him to get nervous and try to do too much. I want him to play like he always does, without any pressure.”

 

“Wow,” Niall breathes out as he turns to look at Harry who also had a shocked expression on his face “This is incredible. I can't really say I'm surprised because he's brilliant but it's still crazy hearing that it's actually happening.”

 

“I'm very proud of him. Best player I've had the privilege of coaching. He's the whole package really. He's not just athletic and in top notch shape, he's got the brains for it. He's brilliant at strategizing. When he's on the pitch, running with the ball, it's like he's thinking three steps ahead, then he executes the play perfectly. Any team would be lucky to have him.” The coach states proudly.

 

“What teams have shown interest?” Niall asks curiously.

 

“So far I've had Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, West Ham, Liverpool and Manchester United approach me. They've all shown interest in having him join their academies. Obviously from there he'd be able to play on the under 18 squad, under 21's and eventually first team. I don't need to tell you that though. You both know football and Niall, you work for Chelsea. I don't think they know that, by the way. He's Rory O'Brien so I'm not sure they've made the connection.”

 

“Probably not. I'll need to let them know though. If they want to put an offer out there for him, I don't want their being any conflict of interest. I'll remove myself completely from the situation.” Niall says, chewing on his bottom lip thoughtfully.

 

“Well anyway, things might get hectic for awhile. You know how it is. Teams will fight over him if they want him bad enough and they do, trust me. That's why I wanted to tell you before I speak to Rory. This is a huge opportunity for him. It's what he's always wanted and I want to make sure he chooses the right team for him. I don't want him to pick Man U just because Beckham and Rooney once played there, or I don't want him to pick Chelsea because his Dad works there and he feels he has to. He needs to pick the team that's the best fit for him, that will treat him right and has a good program to fit his skill set. I know as his parents, you'll both help him and guide him and make sure he's not getting bullied by any of these teams. They can be quite aggressive when they want something.”

 

“Thank you,” Niall smiles gratefully at the coach “It means a lot that you're looking out for him. We'll make sure he makes the decision he wants to make and not one he's pressured into making”

 

“Absolutely,” Harry agrees “Though I don't think he'll need much guidance from us. He's got a really good head on his shoulders. He's so smart and self aware. I'm in awe of him every day to be honest.”

 

“He's a good boy, that's for sure,” The coach stands up, indicating the meeting is over “Things could have taken a wrong turn when his Mum passed but it didn't and I suspect it has a lot to do with you two. Sometimes a stable home life is all a kid needs when things are rough.”

 

“We do try our best. We have to work a bit harder at it sometimes, because of people wanting pictures of us all the time but we manage.” Niall says as he steps out of the office.

 

“Wanting pictures of you all the time is an understatement,” The coach snorts “The world is obsessed with you. I'm pretty certain my wife wants to divorce me and marry you two.”

 

The three men break out into laughter as they walk out of the building and toward the pitch where the coaches assistants were having the team do drills.

 

“Sorry?” Harry shrugs his shoulders, holding his hands out, palms up.

 

The coach just rolls his eyes and chuckles, leaving Harry and Niall to watch the rest of practice in the stands where they usually watch. Once it was over and everyone had showered and changed, the coach brought Rory into his office where Niall and Harry were waiting and broke the news.

 

“I'm sorry,” Rory looked dumbfounded “Did you say _Manchester United_ are interested in me?”

 

“I did,” The coach laid a hand on Rory's shoulder, chuckling. “The other teams aren't exactly bad either.”

 

“No, I know. I'd be excited to play with any of those teams. It's just that- it's Manchester United. They're one of the most storied football clubs in England, in the whole _world_ really, and they're actually interested in me. Even if I never play for them, they were still interested and that- wow. I can't believe it.” Rory shakes his head in awe.

 

“I can believe it. You're that good but you also work really hard. These teams noticed that. You deserve this, Rory. We're so proud of you. Really, really, proud.” Harry says softly, his eyes glistening with tears.

 

“We are,” Niall tells him “I couldn't be more proud. Congratulations.”

 

A huge smile takes over Rory's face and he launches himself at Niall and Harry, hugging them tight and laughing because he was so happy. After awhile, the mini celebration died down and they said goodbye to the coach, heading home to celebrate as a family.

 

It was later that night when Harry found Rory in his bedroom looking subdued. Niall was upstairs taking a shower so Harry decided to find Rory to say goodnight, only to find him looking sad on what should be one of the happiest days of his life.

 

“Alright?” Harry asks, knocking on the open door softly before walking in. Rory smiles at him from where he's laying on his back on his bed but it's a sad smile that Harry never wants to see on him.

 

“Just been a long day,” Rory says as Harry sits himself down on the edge of the bed and rests a hand on Rory's foot.

 

“It has but you were so happy earlier. What changed?” Harry asked, frowning.

 

“I'm still happy. I just- I wish Mam could have seen this, ya know? She always supported me one hundred percent in everything and it just doesn't seem fair that she's not here for something this huge. In a few years I'll probably be playing football in the EPL and she won't be there to see it.” Rory says sadly.

 

“Come here,” Harry spoke softly, his hand wrapping around Rory's wrist to pull him up into a sitting position so he could hug him. Rory rested his cheek against Harry's shoulder and Harry rubbed his back, wanting nothing more than to help Rory feel okay again “I'm sorry. You know if your Mum was here right now she'd be so immensely proud of you, right?”

 

“I do. I know she would be. It just feels...wrong? Like, she spent years bringing me to practices and matches and working to pay for all my equipment and then...she's not here to see it all pay off. It just doesn't feel right.” Rory murmured into Harry's shoulder.

 

“I know. I understand what you mean. I wish there was something I could say to make you feel better. I don't think there is though. All I can do is remind you that your Mum would be so proud of you and if there is some sort of after life, she's there watching over you.” Harry says softly.

 

“I know. I'm fine really. Some days I just miss her more than others but I'm always okay. I'm happy. I have you and Dad, all our extended family, all my friends. It's good.” Rory said, pulling back and giving Harry a sincere smile.

 

“I'm glad you're happy. That's what we want for you. We're so proud of you, Rory. I swear I can't stop smiling. You've worked so hard and it's paying off. You're going to do great things in the future and I can't wait to be right there cheering you on.” Harry smiled, his dimples deepening in his cheeks.

 

“Thanks,” A small blush appeared on Rory's cheeks “Can I ask you something?”

 

“Always,” Harry reaches up to brush a piece of hair out of Rory's eyes.

 

“Was it weird for you when I all of a sudden came into your life? You and Dad were newlyweds and then out of nowhere you had a fifteen year old living with you. Did you ever wish you could have Dad to yourself again?” Rory asked, his crystal blue eyes boring into Harry's.

 

“No. I get Niall to myself all the time. It wasn't really weird having you come into our lives. It was shocking. Good shocking though. We were in America when we found out about you. When Niall told me, I automatically assumed your Mum was making it up. Then Niall showed me the pictures she e-mailed of you and I had no doubt you were Niall's son. Just looking into your eyes is like looking at Niall. Right then and there I knew I wanted you in our lives.” Harry smiled at the memory “Then I knew I loved you the first time I met you. Standing downstairs in our kitchen, smiling wide like your Dad and spitting out cheeky comments like it was nothing. Your Dad didn't get to raise you from when you were born but you were still exactly like him and he's my favourite person. Loving and accepting you came pretty damn easy.”

 

“I love you, too, ya know?” Rory said while his fingers picked at some imaginary lint on his duvet “Like, I could have gotten a stepdad who resented me. I could have gotten a complete arsehole but I didn't. I got you. That makes me feel really lucky. I just- I wanted you to know that.”

 

“Thank you for telling me,” Harry sniffed, trying to hold back tears. “It means a lot to me. I was kind of in the same boat as you. You could have resented _me_ , hated me, not wanted me around while you got to know your Dad. You didn't, though. You accepted me just as easily as I accepted you. I don't think I'll ever be able to express to you how much that meant to me.”

 

Rory continued to look down, his fingers picking at the duvet. Harry could see the blush on his cheeks though, and the slight tremble of his lips. This boy had such a big heart and so much love to give and even though he's a teenager, he's not afraid to show it, to show his emotions. It warms Harry, right to the core of his being.

 

When Rory speaks again, he finally lifts his eyes to look at Harry, the brightness of them never failing to take Harry's breath away. They were Niall's eyes but just a tad bit brighter and Harry can't help but think about the poor girls in the future who were going to turn to putty with just one look from him.

 

“I think- I think maybe I understand what you mean? I still can't seem to find the words to tell you how I felt when you showed me your tattoo.” Rory reaches his fingers up to brush over Harry's arm where the tattoo of the four most important dates in his life sits “Two of those dates are for _me_. You did that for _me,_ even though I'm not your biological son. I mean, what if you and Dad get divorced someday? You'd be stuck with that tattoo.”

 

Harry snorted and brought his hand up to rest on top of Rory's “Your Dad and I will never get divorced. As cliche as this sounds, I love him more than life itself and I know he feels the same for me. For arguments sake, though, if that ever did happened, it wouldn't matter. You'd still be my son and I'd still want to be apart of your life. Every step of the way.”

 

“Really?” Rory perked up, his smile wide “We'd still hang out and stuff?”

 

“Of course we would,” Harry scoffed “It's not an issue though. If Niall ever tried to leave me I'd lock him in the basement for the rest of our lives.”

 

“Oh my God,” Rory broke out into laughter, Harry joining in, unable to help himself when his stepson has a laugh just as infectious as his father.

 

“Want to watch telly with me?” Rory asked after they stopped laughing and there was a few minutes of silence. Harry nodded and the two of them moved up to the head of the bed, sitting with their backs against the headboard.

 

Later, when Niall came looking for his husband, he found the two of them on the bed, both a giggling mess as they watched a comedy show on the telly.

 

“Both my boys in the same room,” Niall walked in, a huge smile on his face “I have everything I need right here.”

 

“Hi baby,” Harry greeted Niall through his giggles. He moved himself to the middle of the bed, closer to Rory, and held an arm out to Niall, silently asking him to join.

 

“What are we watching?” Niall asked as he slipped under Harry's arm and curled his body into Harry's side.

 

“Miranda Hart,” Rory told him “She's doing her stand up routine. Apparently all her dates are a disaster because she can't find a man that's actually taller than her.”

 

“She is freakishly tall for a woman.” Niall laughed. “Everything's okay then?”

 

Harry turned his head toward Niall, making eye contact with him and giving him a meaningful look that Harry hoped he knew meant 'I'll tell you later'. He seemed to, because he nodded his head slightly then reverted his eyes back to the telly.

 

“Yeah, everything's good,” Rory said lightly, a small smile on his face.

 

And it was. It really, really was.

 

 

 

 

 

The call came from Ireland in the beginning of January, just a few days after New Years Day. Jennifer had gone into labour. It was a month early, five weeks actually, and Harry and Niall were worried but they knew this could happen. They knew it was likely to happen because of Jennifer's drug use and the methadone she was currently taking. It was for that reason they were prepared for this to happen and already had their bags packed and ready to go for when the call came. Flights were always leaving Heathrow for Dublin so it wouldn't be hard to get a flight last minute and even though Rory was sixteen and more than old enough to stay on his own, Louis offered to stay at the house while they were gone. Harry and Niall suspected it was only because of the Fifa marathons he and Rory would be having together.

 

They left the house an hour after getting the call, knowing they were cutting it close for the next flight to Dublin. Thanks to Harry's wonderful PA, they were booked on the flight, they just had to make sure to get there.

 

They made it with only ten minutes to spare, falling into their first class seats with their fingers linked together and both struggling to catch their breath a little after their brisk walk through the airport to find their gate. They remained quiet through the pre-flight announcements, and then through take off and when they were finally in the air, Harry turned his face toward Niall, a nervous smile on his face.

 

“Our son could be born any minute. He might be there waiting for us when we land.”

 

“Yeah,” Niall lifted Harry's hand up to his lips and kissed his knuckles “It's amazing isn't it? I bet he'll be beautiful.”

 

“So beautiful,” Harry nodded, tears filling his eyes “He'll be okay won't he?”

 

“I can't promise you that, darlin'. You know I would if I could. He's got the best chance in the world though. There are really great Doctors and Nurses ready to take care of him and he's got a big family waiting to meet him and praying for him. He'll have the best medical care money can buy. This is one time I fully support you throwing around your money.” Niall said, making Harry chuckle against his shoulder.

 

“I can't wait to do this with you,” Harry said “To raise our child together from day one. Just this past year with Rory has been incredible and he was already fifteen. I can't imagine what it'll be like to raise a tiny little human with you.”

 

“It'll be great, H. Next chapter in our life is beginning today.” Niall rested his head against Harry's shoulder “We're gonna kill it together aren't we?”

 

“Always,” Harry kissed the top of Niall's head “Together always.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

They caught a cab to the hospital after landing in Dublin, both men quiet and jittery as they sat holding hands in the backseat. It was an exciting time for them. They'd soon be seeing their baby boy for the first time, get to hold him, kiss him, love him, nurture him. It wouldn't be their first time as a parent but it might as well be since it would be their first time with an infant. It was a scary thought, having such a tiny life in your hands, but they were ready for it, no matter what happened. They were both confidant because they had each other and knew they would never be alone.

 

It was also a nervous time for them because their baby was not only being born premature but could also exhibit side effects from the methadone Jennifer was taking. So not only were they dealing with the problems a preemie would face, but a preemie that could eventually be going through methadone withdrawal. They were both terrified, not wanting their baby to suffer in any way but they were determined to be strong, knowing this little boy would need them more than anything.

 

When they arrived at the hospital, they paid the driver and grabbed their bags then headed inside where Maura was waiting for them inside the main entrance.

 

“Mum,” Niall hugged his Mum immediately, Harry joining in “You got my text that we landed. How is everything going here?”

 

“Well,” Maura pulled back and smiled at her two boys “Your son was born only about twenty minutes ago.”

 

“Oh my God,” Harry gasped, his hand gripping Niall's so tight it was turning white. “How is he?”

 

“We don't know yet. We haven't seen him. We didn't want to see him before you did. He's your son. You deserve that right. The Nurse did come out and tell us he was breathing, moving around, and let out some good, hearty cries. All good signs. She said he was taken straight to the NICU to be thoroughly checked over and as soon as the Doctor was finished, he would come speak to the parents.” Maura was beaming, a proud look on her face “So you better get up there so you can get the news and go see your son.”

 

“Harry,” Niall breathed out “God, _Harry._ ”

 

“I know,” Harry half laughed, half cried as he and Niall clung to each other in the hospital lobby “We have another son. He's here. He's alive. Oh my God.”

 

Niall laughed and pulled out of their hug, wiping under his eyes with his fingers “Okay. Okay, I'm going to try to keep it together here. Where is he, Mum? Lead the way.”

 

“Third floor. Follow me.” Maura started walking toward the elevators, talking to Niall and Harry over her shoulder “There's a waiting room on the NICU ward. We can wait there.”

 

They all stepped into the elevator and watched as the doors closed and they started ascending to the third floor “How's Jennifer?” Niall asked, just as the ding sounded and the doors opened.

 

“She's doing fine. They're cleaning her up and getting her comfortable now. Your Aunt is with her. She wouldn't let her in for the birth, opted to have a Nurse hold her hand, but she's let her in now. They're still not on the best of terms. Maybe they never will be again. I don't know. I can only pray things change for them.” Maura sighs.

 

Niall and Harry didn't really have much to say about that. They hoped things worked out for them too, but there wasn't anything they could do to help it along so they simply followed Maura into the waiting area and sat down in the uncomfortable chairs to wait.

 

“I called your Da, Niall. He's going to drive here after work today. Greg is coming with him. They're both excited for you.” Maura patted Niall's hand.

 

“Thanks Mum. Thanks for being here.” Niall smiled and leaned over to kiss her cheek.

 

“Wouldn't be anywhere else would I? Got another grandson to meet. Speaking of grandsons, how's my eldest?” Maura asked.

 

“He's great, Mum. Makes us so proud everyday. It's kind of crazy how we learn something new about him everyday, even though he's been with us for a year now. He amazes us everyday.” Niall gushes.

 

“He's a beautiful, beautiful boy. I'm so glad he's in our lives now. I always knew any child of yours would be special, Niall. You're my beautiful baby boy. Your smile brightened every day, your laugh filled every room, and you were the cheekiest thing I'd ever seen. You and your brother made everyday of my life worth living. It's an absolute pleasure to be your Mum.” Maura started crying.

 

“I agree with everything you just said, Maura,” Harry sniffed “I never stood a chance once I met him. I fell in love and I fell hard. How could I not? He's the best person I know.”

 

“Jesus,” Niall cried into his hands “Why are the two of you ganging up on me right now? I'm emotional enough and now you gotta make me cry?”

 

“To be fair, your Mum started it,” Harry pointed at his mother in law, sending the three of them into a fit of laughter. It only died down when a Doctor walked into the room with a chart in his hand.

 

“Niall Horan and Harry Styles- Horan?” He read the names off a piece of paper in his chart before looking up to make sure he had the right people.

 

“That's us,” Niall said quickly, jumping up alongside Harry to shake the Doctors hand.

 

“Well let me first extend my congratulations to you both. You have a beautiful son whom you'll get to meet shortly. First I have some things to go over with you,” The Doctor says with a kind smile.

 

“Yeah. Yes. Please. How is he?” Harry asked with wide eyes, his voice shaking slightly.

 

“He's good. He was born at thirty-five weeks which means he is premature but not overly so. So far he isn't suffering from anything any other baby wouldn't face at thirty-five weeks. We ran some tests and he is anemic, which is common in premature babies. He'll be given medication through his IV to increase red blood cell production and the anemia should subside with regular treatments.” The Doctor explains, his hands flipping through the chart.

 

“His lungs are pretty good, almost fully developed. He doesn't need to be on a breathing machine but you will see tubes in his nose just to help with oxygen. It's likely he'll have a condition called apnea. It's common in premature babies. Sometimes, the baby will take one long breath, then one short one before stopping altogether for ten to fifteen seconds. When this happens, sensors on the babies chest will set off an alarm on the monitor, alerting a Nurse who will then stimulate the baby so he will take a breath. This is usually done by patting the baby or touching the soles of his feet. Sometimes, apnea is accompanied by something called Bradycardia, or a slow heart rate. Your son will be closely monitored for both.”

 

“All in all, I'm quite pleased. So far he doesn't appear to be showing any side effects from the methadone the mother is using, besides a low birth weight. He weighs a little less than I would like him to for being five weeks early but it's to be expected and he will be receiving all the necessary nutrients and supplements needed to help him gain weight so that he's at a weight we're happy with. Other than that, he's wonderful. We're not out of the woods yet because sometimes it can take a couple days or even weeks for the withdrawal symptoms to show themselves. We'll be watching for that while he's here over the next few weeks but hopefully it won't be an issue.”

 

“Wow,” Niall blows out a long breath, his mind rapidly going over everything he just heard “None of that sounds too bad? Like, I was expecting much worse to be honest.”

 

The Doctor smiled and slipped the chart under his arm, clasping his hands in front of him “It certainly could have been worse. It's always hard to know what we'll face from a baby who's mother did drugs. Your little boy is a fighter, Mr. Horan. He came into this world screaming I was told and his reflexes are perfect, his grip is strong...let's just say I'm cautiously optimistic right now. He's only been with us for an hour or so and complications certainly could arise over the next days or weeks but he's strong and we're watching him closely. He's got a great chance.”

 

“That's so good to hear,” Harry smiled through his tears “Did you hear that, Niall? Our baby boy is a fighter. I can't wait to see him. When can we see him?”

 

“I'll take you right now. You'll need to wash your hands and wear a hat and gown before heading inside the nursery. Also, I must insist you do as the Nurses tell you. There are other sick babies in there and if something happens and the staff needs room to work, you'll need to leave.” The Doctor tells them.

 

“Absolutely. We'll do whatever they ask us to.” Harry nods his head quickly.

 

“Okay. Follow me then,” The Doctor says, turning around and heading out of the waiting area and down a hall with Harry and Niall right behind. They turn to say something to Maura but she just waves them on with tears in her eyes and a smile on her face, telling them she'll wait for them there.

 

They stop in front of a door down the hall and the Doctor lets them in showing them where they can wash their hands and put on hats and gowns and when they're done, a Nurse comes in to get them.

 

“Hello Mr. Horan and Mr. Styles-Horan. My name is James and I'm the Nurse in charge of your son on this shift,” The young man who looked to be around Harry's age smiled brightly at them. “Are you ready to meet him?”

 

“Please call us Niall and Harry,” Niall points at himself and then Harry “And yes, we're ready. We're so excited to meet him.”

 

“Great! Before we go in I want to make you aware of what you'll see. Your son is in an incubator for now. Premature babies often have trouble regulating their body temperature so the incubator helps to keep them nice and warm. He has a feeding tube and an IV that we will use to push the medications he will need and there are sensors on his chest to monitor his breathing. He's a bit underweight, coming in at just a smidgen under four pounds. He'll fit in the palm of your hand but don't let that scare you. He's doing well and he's a strong boy, he'll be at full weight in no time. Any questions?” James asks with a smile.

 

“Will we get to hold him yet?” Niall asks, desperately hoping the answer is yes.

 

“Absolutely! We encourage it. We don't want him out of the incubator for too long but yes, you will be able to hold your son. We want him to get to know your voices right away so he can bond with you and then you'll be able to soothe him. He'll recognize your voices and feel safe with you. Skin to skin contact is important. It's called kangaroo care. You'll take your shirt off and we'll put him against your chest with a blanket over him. It will help you bond with him and also make him feel safe. You'll love it.” James grinned, making him look like a little boy.

 

“I read about this. Usually the birth mother does it to help regulate the body temperature and to help with breast feeding but I read that adoptive parents can do it as well. Oh my God, I can't wait to hold him.” Harry was rocking forward on the balls of his feet, smiling wide as he waits to be brought to his son.

 

“Let's get to it then,” James says, opening up the door of the room they were in and leading the way into the NICU.

 

As soon as they entered the ward, the steady sounds of monitors beeping filled their ears and Nurses flitted about, efficiently taking care of their tiny little patients. Niall swallowed thickly and gripped Harry's hand tight in his own, his nerves making his heart rate go up and beads of sweat were breaking out on his forehead under the cap he was wearing. He kept his eyes focused ahead, following James as he led them toward the front of the room and one step closer to his son.

 

“Thank you, CeeCee,” James is saying as he stops in front of an incubator “How's my little patient doing?”

 

“He's doing well. No troubles at all while you were gone. He's a little Prince, aren't you baby?” The Nurse, CeeCee, cooed, a smile on her face as she gently ran the tip of her finger over a tiny little arm.

 

“His Daddies are here to meet him. I'm very glad to see he's awake,” James grinned over his shoulder at Niall and Harry.

 

CeeCee stood up, smiling brightly at Niall and Harry “Congratulations. He's beautiful. I'll head on back to my patient now and give you some privacy with your son.”

 

Niall and Harry both thanked her then turned back around to find James pulling a rocking chair over next to them. “Alright. Who gets to go first?”

 

“Harry,” Niall said immediately, before Harry could even open his mouth “Go ahead darlin'. I've been waiting a long time to see this. Don't keep me waiting any longer.”

 

“Okay,” Harry sniffed, sitting down in the rocking chair and fixing a wobbly smile on Niall. He pulled his gown down so he could get his shirt off, then sat trembling slightly as James placed a blanket over his shoulders.

 

“Alright. Just take some deep breaths Harry. You're going to be just fine. He won't break. I promise.” James chuckled as he opened up the incubator and pushed some wires to the side.

 

Over the next few moments, Niall watched as James expertly lifted the tiniest baby he'd ever seen out of the incubator, careful of the IV and feeding tube that were needed to care for their son. Then he watched as his son, who was naked except for his nappy and tiny little hat on his head, kicked his legs out a little and made a tiny cry of protest before he was gently being placed in Harry's arms. Then...he couldn't breathe. He was so overcome with emotion as he watched James position their son against Harry's chest, softly giving Harry instructions on how to hold him, that he could barely breathe.

 

“Niall...” Harry's voice was barely a whisper and filled with awe “Oh Niall...”

 

Niall somehow managed to move his body so he was standing beside the rocking chair, then he knelt down so he was on the same level as Harry and fought, rather unsuccessfully, to control his emotions as he looked at his son in his husbands arms for the first time. It was a breathtaking sight, seeing his son for the first time, resting against his husbands strong, naked chest. James had placed a blanket over his back but Niall could still see one tiny arm flailing around, he could still see his sons face turned to the side to face Niall, his tiny little cheek resting on one of Harry's pecs. He was beautiful. The most precious thing he's ever seen and he was barely bigger than one of Harry's large hands.

 

“I can feel him breathing against my chest. I can feel the little puffs of air on my skin,” Harry said in a choked voice, the tears rapidly falling down his cheeks “Can you see him, Niall? Can you see our son?”

 

“Yeah,” Niall sniffled, one of his hands letting go of the arm of the rocking chair to wipe at his cheeks “I can see him. He's amazing darlin'. He's- he's got a cute little pout just like you.”

 

Harry laughs slightly, his hand moving in circles over their sons back “You're in trouble then. I always get my way when I pout at you.”

 

Niall lifts his watery eyes to meet his husbands, the look of love passing between them strong enough to knock the breath out of Niall. He gently slid his index finger in under the blanket, intending to softly brush it against their sons tiny little hand but instead, the fingers open up and the tiny hand grips Niall's finger, tighter than Niall would ever think is possible for such a small baby. His eyes widen at the sight, at the feeling of it, and when he glances up at Harry again, his husband is biting down on his lip, the tiniest of smiles breaking through.

 

“He's got quite the grip, the little lad,” Niall's voice sounds rough with emotion but he's so happy, happier than he's ever been “What do think darlin'? Do any of the names we picked out fit him?”

 

Harry purses his lips together, his brow furrowed as he gently rocks back and forth in the chair while he thinks “I think- I think I like one we haven't discussed. I hadn't even thought of it until now.”

 

Niall nods his head slowly, his hand moving to lay on top of the hand Harry had on their sons back, his thumb brushing over Harry's wedding band “Let's hear it then. What are you thinking?”

 

“I was thinking Finnegan. I really want an Irish name like you and Rory have and I have _no_ idea why we never thought of this one. The other Irish names we talked about are wonderful but the moment I held him in my arms I just-I just felt Finnegan. Only if you like it though. If you hate it, we don't have to-”

 

“Harry,” Niall leaned up and stopped Harry with a sweet kiss “I love it. It's perfect. I'm upset we never thought of it before now. Finnegan.”

 

“Yeah,” Harry pulled Niall back to him with his free hand curled in the front of his gown. He kissed him with a smile on his face, making Niall break out into a smile of his own, completely making the kiss impossible “Finnegan. Our beautiful boy, Finnegan.”

 

Niall presses his forehead against Harry's and whispers the name a few times before pulling back and looking into Harry's eyes “How about Finnegan Robert Horan?”

 

Harry's eyes grew wide and his mouth opened up in an 'O' shape “Yes. Oh! That's brilliant, Niall. A perfect name. Your Dad is going to be so happy. He might even cry.”

 

“Might?” Niall snorted “He'll cry like a- well, like a baby.”

 

Harry held in his laugh, not wanting to startle Finnegan but Niall could tell he was about to let out one of his loud barks of a laugh.

 

“How's everything going over here?” James appeared by Niall's side, a huge smile still on his face.

 

“It's going great. In fact,” Niall points a finger at the incubator “You can remove that sticker that says Baby Boy Horan. Our boy is going to be called Finnegan. Finnegan Robert Horan.”

 

“Ah!” James looks down fondly at the little bundle in Harry's arms “That's a beautiful name. I'll get it sorted right away. First, would you like me to help switch Finnegan to you, Niall?”

 

Niall bit his lip and nodded his head, excitement thrumming through his body along with nervousness. He can feel his body shaking slightly and closes his eyes taking some slow deep breaths, willing himself to calm down so he doesn't startle Finnegan. When he opens his eyes again, James is lifting Finn from Harry's arms and Harry was standing up, fixing his shirt and gesturing to Niall to sit down.

 

Niall does, after removing his shirt and pulling his gown down. Harry lays the blanket that was around his shoulders over Niall's then steps back, watching with wide,teary eyes as Finn is placed in Niall's arms.

 

The moment he feels his sons skin against his own, feels his heart beating against his own, hears the soft cooing noises he's making, is the moment Niall falls in love. It's the moment when Niall's body is flooded with the urge to protect this tiny little human with every fibre of his being. It's the moment he knows he'd do anything for this little boy, go to the ends of the Earth for him if he had to. It's the moment he knows this beautiful little boy had his heart. Just like Harry and just like Rory.

 

“Hi, Finnegan,” Niall whispers softly against his sons covered head “Hi, bub. I'm your daddy and I'm so, so happy to meet you.”

 

“Bub,” Harry smiles wide, tears trickling down his face “That's so cute. Where did you get that?”

 

“Dunno,” Niall looked up at Harry “It just...came out. Maybe I heard it on the telly or something.”

 

“Maybe,” Harry says, kneeling down on the hard floor next to the chair and pressing his cheek against Niall's bicep. He could peak in at Finnegan's face that way and Niall can't blame him one bit for wanting to. “He's perfect isn't he?”

 

“So perfect,” Niall agrees “And so loved. You've got a whole great big family beyond these doors, just waiting to meet you bub. You keep fighting, keep getting strong so they can see how beautiful you are.”

 

“Oh God,” Harry groans at the mention of family “I forgot to call my Mum.”

 

Niall bites down on his lip to keep from laughing, barely managing when he hears James snort from a few feet away. He likes this Nurse. He really fucking likes him.

 

Niall holds on to Finnegan for a few more minutes, then James is taking him again, putting him back in the incubator carefully and telling them they'll need to leave for a bit because the Doctor will be in shortly to check on their son. He tells them if all remains well, they can come back and sit with Finn once the Doctor is finished and Niall and Harry tell him they'll definitely be doing that before leaving the ward, getting out of their gowns and hats, and heading back to find Maura. When they enter the waiting area, Maura's sister is sitting there with her and they both jump up the moment they see Niall and Harry.

 

“Hi, Aunt Sheilagh,” Niall says, hugging and kissing his Aunt on the cheek “How's Jenn?”

 

“She's good. Sleeping now.” Sheilagh says, a small, nervous smile on her face “How's my- I mean, how's the baby?”

 

“Aunt Sheilagh,” Niall takes her cold hands in his and smiles reassuringly at her “You can call him your grandson. That's what he is, after all. Harry and I talked about it and we both agreed right away that our son would have three grandmother's as well as three grandfathers. Mum, Anne and you, and Da, Robin, and Uncle Conor. You'll be a part of his life as much as you want to be. All we ask is that you respect that Harry and I are his parents.”

 

“Oh Niall,” Sheilagh covers her mouth with her hand to stifle her sobs “Oh you sweet, sweet boy. I love you so much. I've known you and watched you grow since the moment you were born and I couldn't be more proud of the man you've become. It- it makes me so happy to know that you and Harry will be taking care of my sweet little grandson. He couldn't get a better set of parents. He'll be safe with you. He'll thrive and be happy. That's all I want. I will always respect you as his parents. I promise you that.”

 

“Thank you,” Niall chokes back his own sobs “I promise we'll love him and protect him always. He's so precious and doing well, by the way. He's strong. A real fighter.”

 

“Have you decided on a name for him?” Maura asked from where she was standing next to Harry, hugging him close.

 

“We have. Harry thought of it actually and we both love it. Our son will be called Finnegan Robert Horan.” Niall says, his smile so bright it can probably be seen from space.

 

“That's a lovely name, Niall. It'll mean so much to your Da as well.” Maura stepped forward to hug her son “Congratulations love.”

 

From there they all headed to the hospital cafeteria for a cup of tea or coffee and to get something to eat. James had both Niall and Harry's phone numbers and promised to call as soon as it was okay to come back to the neonatal ward so they felt okay leaving for awhile. They knew they couldn't spend every minute with Finn no matter how much they wanted to so they may as well get used to it right away.

 

Harry called his Mum, who simply laughed at him and told him his mother in law knows him well because she had called her right after she called Harry and Niall and let her know what was happening. She told Harry she loved him and Niall and to let her know when the baby can have visitors besides his parents and she'd be on he first flight over.

 

After that, they called Rory together, on speaker phone, and told him his little brother was doing just fine. He was very happy to hear it and he started shouting to Louis, who was somewhere else in the house, and had everyone in the cafeteria staring at them like they were nuts. They all laughed and Niall decided it might be a good time to take him off speaker before Louis came into the room and started cursing up a storm.

 

Bobby and Greg arrived a few hours later, once Niall and Harry had gone back in to sit with Finn. As long as they were quiet and did as the nurses asked, they were allowed to stay until visiting hours were over in the evening. Of course they didn't want to leave him ever, but knew they had to, so at nine that evening they left with a promise from James that he would call them if anything at all happened, big or small.

 

As soon as they made it into the waiting area, they were both pulled into a massive hug by Bobby and Greg, Bobby telling them over and over again how happy he was for them and how excited he was to have a third grand son. When Niall broke the news to him with a huge grin that their sons name was Finnegan Robert Horan, the older man turned into a blubbering mess just like Niall knew he would and that of course set Harry off so the two of them cried together while Niall shook his head and stood back with is Mum and Aunt to watch.

 

Shortly after, Niall and Harry headed to the hotel they booked just down the street from the hospital. They insisted on paying for a room for Greg and Bobby since they took the time to drive down to Dublin for them and after a lot of arguing, Bobby finally gave in with the stipulation that he be allowed to buy everyone dinner at the hotel restaurant.

 

Maura and her sister took a pass because they wanted to get back to Sheilagh's house to check on her husband. Niall and Harry agreed though, and after they all checked into their rooms and freshened up, they met in the restaurant for a nice meal.

 

There was whiskey and beer involved, along with a lot of laughter and stories about Greg and Niall when they were children. They talked about Rory and Theo, Bobby's favourite topic, and they talked about Niall's job and asked Harry if he was going to make another album anytime soon. It's a really great catch up and by the time Niall and Harry walk into their room around midnight, they're both exhausted, a little tipsy, and extremely happy.

 

“What a day,” Niall groans as he falls back onto the bed, spread eagle. “I'm so tired but I know I won't fall asleep right away because I'm so keyed up. Kind of like you after a show.”

 

“Mmm,” Harry hums, toeing off his boots and pulling his shirt off over his head “Was an exciting day. Our baby boy was born today. I'll need to make a trip to a tattoo shop. Gotta add to my tattoo with our sons birthday.”

 

Niall smiled with his eyes closed, his forearm thrown over his forehead “I love that you do that. Still remember the look on Rory's face when he saw it and recognized the dates. I knew he loved you, I heard him tell you so, but I think in that moment I realized just how much.”

 

“Yeah,” Harry's eyes teared up a bit at the memory “I didn't know I could love someone so much. I mean, I love you with everything I have but it's a romantic love. It's different with Rory. I don't just love him, I have this overwhelming need to protect him always. I've never felt like that before. I don't know...I don't think I'm explaining myself very well right now.”

 

“No, I understand you. I know what you mean,” Niall says quietly, his eyes still closed and his arm still slung over his forehead “I feel the same way.”

 

“He's beautiful, isn't he?” Harry said after a minute of silence.

 

“Mmm,” Niall hummed again “Don't know how Rory would feel about being called beautiful but-”

 

“Niall!” Harry squawked over Niall's cackling “You know I meant Finnegan!”

 

Niall opens his mouth to reply but only gets a mouth full of fabric when Harry tosses his jeans at Niall's face. He lets out an undignified squawk of his own and opens his eyes just in time to see his husband's arse, clad in a pair of tight dark purple boxers, as he walked into the en suite.

 

Niall's mouth immediately went dry and he could feel the goosebumps break out over his skin at the sight of his husband. He feels the stir of arousal deep in his gut and pulls himself up into a sitting position, wiping the palms of his hands in his dark blue jeans.

 

The attraction is immediate. It always was when it came to Harry. Even after almost two years of marriage and five years as a couple, the sight of his husband nearly naked causes a thrumming in Niall's veins that makes him feel hot all over. One look at the way Harry's boxers hug his arse and thighs just right, sends Niall's libido into overdrive and if he weren't so fucking turned on he'd laugh at how easy he was.

 

Harry must notice something on Niall's face when he comes out of the bathroom with his hair pulled back in a bun, because before Niall has a chance to react, Harry has his hands flat on Niall's chest and is pushing him back onto the bed. He straddles Niall's hips, quick like a cat, and Niall wants to laugh, he really does, because how his husband can be so agile in bed yet fall all over himself when he so much as walks ten feet, Niall will never know, but he doesn't laugh, can't laugh, because the look in Harry's eyes is so intense it renders Niall speechless.

 

Harry runs his hands up and down over Niall's chest, resting them on his hips as he leans down for a kiss. His lips slide over Niall's slow and sensual, his tongue sliding out lazily and licking into Niall's mouth, making Niall take in a deep breath through his nose, letting it out with a moan as he wraps his arms around Harry to pull him closer.

 

The kiss keeps going, picking up the pace, their tongues sliding together over and over again, their hands roaming each others bodies, touching and feeling as if they hadn't been doing this for the past five years. When they finally break the kiss, it's only so Harry can help Niall pull his shirt over his head, then they're right back to kissing, the pace becoming frantic as Harry's hips begin to rock down over Niall's, making them both hard and desperate for it.

 

They're both completely naked sometime later. Niall had carefully opened Harry up and now Harry was sitting on his cock, panting and digging his fingers into Niall's chest while he moves his hips in slow, languid figure eights.

 

“You're so gorgeous, darlin'. So incredible,” Niall says on a breathy moan, his eyes wide as he looks up at his husband fucking himself on his cock. “You know exactly how to make us both feel good, don't you? You're so good, babe, so fucking good.”

 

“I love you,” Harry manages to pant out, his hips beginning to rock faster back and forth “Only ever want to make you feel good.”

 

“ _Christ._ You do, babe,” Niall grunts, his hands moving around from Harry's hips to squeeze his arse.

 

Harry gasps and sits up straight, throwing his head back and arching his back. He loved when Niall put his hands on his arse, loved the zing that runs up his spine as Niall's calloused fingers dig into the flesh. It makes him crazy and soon enough he's got his eyes closed and is biting down hard on his bottom lip as he moves his hips frantically, fucking himself hard and fast on Niall's cock.

 

The fast pace seemed to ignite something in Niall as well, making his grip on Harry's arse tighter and making his own hips repeatedly thrust up off the bed to meet Harry's every move.

 

“Oh my- oh my _fucking God_ ,” Harry screamed, his voice sounding a bit strangled and like it went up an octave “Niall. Niall, Niall, Niall, oh fuck! Don't stop, don't-”

 

“Oh my God you're so gorgeous. Fuck, Harry. _Fuck_ ,” Niall curses through his gritted teeth. He can feel the sweat beading on his forehead and along his sternum underneath his chest hair. Their pace was punishing and they were both gasping for breath but they kept going, refusing to stop until they both come.

 

For the next ten minutes, not another word was said, the only sounds in the room being their heavy breathing, their moans, Harry's high whining sounds, and the slapping sound of Niall's thighs against Harry's arse as he fucked continuously up into Harry.

 

“Darlin',” Niall dug his fingers harder into Harry's flesh, his tongue licking out and catching the sweat on his upper lip “I'm gonna come. Fuck-”

 

“ _Yeah_ ,” Harry said, breathlessly. He brought his hand to his own cock and started tugging frantically, refusing to let Niall do it because he didn't want him to release the grip he had on his arse.

 

Niall came inside Harry a few minutes later, gasping when he felt his come shooting into Harry's arse. He rode it out until he had nothing left, then lay spent, his voice hoarse as he talked his husband through his own orgasm.

 

When they both came down, Niall pulled out of Harry, then quick as lightning he flipped them over, silencing Harry's startled shout with his lips and tongue as he kissed him hard. When he broke the kiss, he lay still on top of his husband and kissed all over his sweaty face.

 

“You,” kiss to the forehead “are,” kiss to the left cheek “the,” kiss to the right cheek “sexiest,” kiss to one dimple “man,” kiss to the other dimple “I've,” kiss to the chin “ever,” kiss to the tip of his nose “seen,” kiss to the lips. “Do you have any idea how gone I am for you? Hmm? Love you so, so, much.”

 

Harry was giggling at this point, the smile on his face so big, Niall couldn't even kiss him properly. “I'm just as gone for you, baby.”

 

“Luckiest man in the world, I am,” Niall leaned in and playfully bit Harry's bottom lip “Got you, got two beautiful sons, got a great job, great extended family. Couldn't ask for more. Don't need anymore than that.”

 

“I agree,” Harry retaliated by playfully digging his teeth into the dimple on Niall's chin “I'd like to have more kids, a little girl at some point, but if it doesn't happen, I'll be happy with our two boys and you.”

 

“Me too,” Niall says “But it's going to happen for us. There's a lot more kids in our future. I just know it.”

 

“Can't wait!” Harry said, kissing Niall long and slow “Do you think we could get a quick shower now? Kinda got come in my arse and everything.”

 

Niall laughed loudly and pecked Harry's lips one last time before he got up and dragged Harry with him, the two of them stumbling their way to the bathroom with happy hearts and big smiles on their faces.

 

 

~~~ 

 

 

Finnegan was ten days old when Niall got the biggest scare of his life.

 

They were still in Dublin after being told by the Doctor that Finn would likely be staying in the hospital for five weeks, until what was originally supposed to be his due date. Niall and Harry took it in stride and immediately made arrangements for the next five weeks. They had their hotel room already, they had clothes and other essentials and what they didn't have they could easily buy. The only thing that really concerned them was being away from Rory. They didn't want him to think he wasn't important, that he was being pushed aside now that Finn was in their lives. He rolled his eyes at them over Skype, telling them not to be ridiculous, he was perfectly fine with Louis and his little brother needed them a lot more than he did right now.

 

Niall and Harry believed him, could tell he was fine, but they still wanted to show him he was just as important to them as he was before Finn was born. So they came up with a plan. They'd take turns going home to London for the weekends. One of them would stay with Finn in Dublin while the other left on Friday lunch time to fly back in time to pick up Rory from school and spend the weekend with him, flying back to Dublin Monday morning after Rory went to school.

 

It worked out great. Niall went the first weekend and now Harry was just getting back after his weekend with Rory. They had Skyped with Niall on Saturday night from where they were watching films on Harry and Niall's bed, making Niall laugh so hard when Rory said Harry took him shopping after his footie match and Harry tried to get him to try on some of the outrageous patterned shirts Harry is known for wearing. The poor kid looked horrified at the prospect and Niall had spent a good ten minutes laughing at the look on his face.

 

Now it was Monday night, Harry had gotten back that morning and after getting each other off in the shower, they went to bed, falling asleep immediately. That's when Niall had the dream that shook him to his core and had him bolting upright in the bed at exactly three fifty-nine in the morning.

 

“Niall?” Harry's sleepy voice broke through the darkness “Niall, what is it?”

 

Niall couldn't answer him. He couldn't speak at all. Just sat there in the bed gasping for air and covered in sweat, his body shaking uncontrollably.

 

“Niall?” Harry was sounding more awake now, more alert. The light on the bedside table came on, lighting up the room and had Harry gasping at the state Niall was in “Baby? What happened? Are you sick? Are you hurt? Fuck, you're shaking so bad.”

 

Niall continued to breathe hard, his hands trembling as he flung the duvet back and stood up on shaking legs “Hos-hospital.”

 

“What?” Harry's face had gone pale, concern and fear showing in his eyes. He held Niall's face in his hands, feeling his forehead to see if he had a fever “Are you sick? You need the hospital?”

 

Niall shook his head frantically, reaching down onto the floor to pick up his jeans to pull on “No. No. Finn.” Niall started sobbing “Finn. We-we gotta go to the hospital.”

 

“What do you mean, no? What about Finn? Niall! You're not making sense! You're scaring me!” Harry was frantic himself now, his fingers digging into Niall's biceps.

 

“ _We have to go to the hospital_. We just have to go, Harry.” Niall's eyes were wild as he grabbed for a shirt to put on “Harry! We need to go!”

 

Harry didn't understand. He was scared and not getting a straight answer from his husband but he did as he said and quickly put some clothes on, grabbing his phone and wallet and charging out the door after Niall.

 

They were practically jogging down the mostly empty streets to the hospital when Harry's phone started ringing. Niall wasn't slowing down for anything so Harry had to grab the phone from his pocket and answer it, all while trying to keep pace with his husband.

 

When he saw the number for the hospital on the screen, his blood ran cold and he stopped right in the middle of the street, shouting at Niall to stop. Miraculously, Niall did stop and Harry grabbed on to his forearm with a shaky hand “Hello?”

 

“Harry? This is James calling from the NICU,” The now familiar Irish accent filled Harry's ear.

 

“Oh God,” Harry's voice broke and he quickly covered his mouth with his hand to keep in the sob in his throat.

 

“Now I don't want you to panic okay?” James voice was steady and calm, providing at least a smidgen of reassurance to Harry “There's been a change in Finnegan's condition over the past hour or so and we'd like you to come in so we can talk to you about it.”

 

“ _Please_ ,” Harry begged “Please- is he okay? Please tell me he's okay!”

 

“I can't divulge any information over the phone. It's against hospital policy. I will say, however, that Finnegan has been a fighter since day one and he's still fighting, Harry. The Doctor will be here to talk to you as soon as you get here.” James tried to reassure him.

 

“We- we'll be there in five minutes. We were- we were already on the way over. I don't know why- I don't- Niall just wanted to go and-”

 

“It's okay, Harry. I'll see you in five minutes, yeah?”

 

“Okay,” Harry said, hanging up the phone and shoving it back into his pocket. He didn't get a chance to say anything to Niall. Niall simply grabbed him and pulled him along behind him, leaving Harry reeling and trying to understand something that made no sense at all. How the _fuck_ did Niall know to go to the hospital?

 

Exactly five minutes later, they were standing in front of the window to the neonatal nursery, waiting for James and the Doctor to come out. James spotted them pretty quickly and as soon as the Doctor was finished examining their son, he and James both exited to come talk to them.

 

“Hello, Niall. Harry. Thank you for coming in,” The Doctor started, a kind smile on his face “So, the situation we have here is that your son has likely developed an infection. James alerted me an hour ago that Finnegan had developed a high temperature and was uncomfortable and a bit lethargic. We've started him on all the proper medications to bring the fever down as well as to eradicate the infection. It's a bit more difficult with a premature baby because they sometimes can't produce enough white blood cells and antibodies to fight an infection. Usually a baby will receive antibodies from his mother in the third trimester but because Finnegan was born five weeks early and antibodies are passed though the placenta, it's likely he didn't get enough to fight an infection.”

 

“What does that mean?” Niall asked in a shaky voice “Will he not be able to fight this?”

 

“It means he can't do the fighting himself. We have to help him along. It'll be touch and go over the next few hours but I want to assure you we're doing everything humanly possible to get Finnegan through this. James is a wonderful Nurse and the best the Neonatal Unit has, so your baby is in very good hands. If you have any questions, have me paged or James will be able to answer anything you might want to know. Is there anything else you'd like to ask me right now?” The Doctor asked.

 

“Is he in any pain?” Harry choked out, trying hard to stay calm until the Doctor left.

 

“Not at all. The medications, along with the fever, will make him drowsy. He'll likely sleep through the whole thing.” The Doctor explained.

 

“Can we see him?” Niall asked.

 

“You can. You can sit with him, talk to him, let him know you're here. He can't leave the incubator though. Not until we get rid of this fever.” The Doctor said “If you'd like to go in right now, James can get you all situated. I have some other patients to see but please have me paged if you need anything, okay?

 

“Yes. Thank you, Doctor. Thank you so much,” Harry said, shaking the Doctors hand before he left.

 

“Alright. You both know the drill. We'll get you suited up so you can sit with your son,” James says, turning around and leading the way into the little room next to the nursery where they would get their gowns on.

 

“Do you think he'll know we're here?” Harry asks quietly as he adjusts the cap on his head “I don't want him to feel alone.”

 

“He'll know your voices, recognize your touch. He'll know. You're both really great parents. You spend all your time here. He knows you love him and he'll never be alone. If I have to leave the nursery at all, like now, one of the other Nurses is with him. When I'm not working, you've met the other Nurses assigned to him. Ciara, Alice, Sharon. They won't ever leave him alone. You have my word on that,” James said sincerely “Are you ready to go in?”

 

Harry and Niall both nodded then they followed James, hand in hand, into the nursery and straight to their son. As soon as they sat by the incubator, Harry couldn't keep himself composed anymore. The tears silently fell down his cheeks as he took in his tiny baby boy. He looked normal except for the flush of his skin due to his fever. He wasn't awake though and Harry had gotten used to seeing his beautiful eyes staring up at him everyday, had gotten used to the little whiny noises he made when Harry would cuddle him into his chest. He wanted to hold him right now, _needed_ to hold him but he couldn't and it was breaking his heart.

 

“Shhh,” Niall pressed his lips to Harry's cheek, his forehead against his temple “It's okay darlin'. He's okay. He's sleeping so he can get stronger and we'll be here when he wakes up okay?”

 

“I know,” Harry sniffled “I'm not leaving this hospital until he's okay again. I just love him so much, Niall. He's our baby boy.”

 

“He is. He is and he's so strong. We have to have faith in him, that he's fighting with all he's got to come home with us. We have to have faith he'll be okay. We can do it together, yeah? You and I.” Niall says against Harry's cheek, his hand gripping Harry's tight.

 

“Yeah,” Harry nodded his head and wiped the tears from his face with his free hand “Yeah. We need to be strong for him. We can get through this together. You, me and Finn.”

 

“Absolutely,” Niall says “We're a family.”

 

Harry nods again then slides his hand in through one of the holes in the incubator. He runs his finger gently over his sons tiny little hand and softly begins to sing a lullaby. He sings and sings and sings, hoping his son can hear him and that it will soothe him somehow.

 

“He's a lucky boy,” James says an hour later when Harry can't sing anymore because his throat is so dry “He's got a Papa who has a lovely singing voice.”

 

Niall lifts his head from where it was resting on Harry's shoulder and smiles fondly at his husband “That he does. I could listen to him sing all day.”

 

“I don't know about lovely but I do okay I guess,” Harry murmurs, never taking his eyes off of Finn.

 

“Guess he blocked out the time he sold a gazillion records around the world,” James whispers, leaning in between the two of them and winking when Niall laughed into Harry's shirt.

 

For the next few hours, they stayed sitting there with their son, talking to him, singing to him and hoping he could feel their presence. They didn't leave until the Doctor came to do his rounds and check on all the babies. They had to leave while that was going on so they went to the cafeteria to buy some water and coffee then came back to the waiting area in the NICU to wait to be let back in with their son.

 

“What was that earlier, Niall?” Harry finally asked after awhile, his paper cup of coffee resting in between both his hands, keeping them warm “I can't- you were frantic, telling me we had to get to the hospital. That was at least ten minutes before James called. What _was_ that?”

 

Niall sat forward with his elbows on his knees and his head hanging down. He looked to his right where Harry was sitting, trying to find the words to explain “I don't- I don't really know. It was so fucking crazy. I've never been so scared in my life.”

 

“What was crazy? Why did you wake up the way you did? I need some answers here Niall, because I don't believe in psychics but what you did seemed pretty fucking psychic to me.”

 

“I don't know, Harry! Okay? I don't know what it was. I'm just as freaked out about this.” Niall ran a shaky hand through his hair “I was asleep and having this horrible dream. We were at home in London and Finn was crying. I tried to go to him but I couldn't find him. I checked every room in the house, every cupboard but he wasn't there! Then his crying kept getting louder and louder and I was crying and running around the house trying to get to him. I ran into the kitchen again and- and Aiden was sitting there at the table. He took my hand in his and told me I needed to wake up. I was confused. I wasn't asleep, I was standing there in my kitchen. It didn't make sense. I told him so and he stood up and told me he loved me and that I needed to trust him and wake up because my son needed me. Then he touched my face and that's when I woke up.”

 

“Oh my God,” Harry whispered “What-?”

 

“I don't understand it either,” Niall shakes his head. His hands are pressed together in the prayer position and resting against his lips “I just- I don't know. He told me to trust him. I always trusted him and I swear when I woke up I could still feel his fingers on my cheek. It was scary and surreal but I just had this feeling I needed to listen to him. That we needed to get here to our son as soon as possible.”

 

“I don't even know what to say right now,” Harry sat back in his chair, blowing out a long breath “So what? Aiden is watching over you and came to you in a dream to warn you that Finn was sick? Is that what you believe?”

 

“I don't know,” Niall shrugged, his laugh self deprecating “Maybe? Mum would say that's what happened if she were here right now. I've never believed in that stuff though. Am I supposed to just forget everything I believe because of a dream? I just don't know.”

 

“I don't either. I just- I can't even think about this anymore. I can't focus on anything but our son right now.” Harry says, his voice sounding tired.

 

Niall nodded and reached over to take one of Harry's hands out of his lap, lacing their fingers together “That's all I want to focus on too.”

 

“Alright. Then that's what we'll do.”

 

 ~~~

 

The next thirty-six hours were the worst of Harry and Niall's lives. Even worse than when they lost Jack and Aiden because Finnegan was their _son_. Their sweet, innocent baby boy who deserved to live and experience everything life has to offer. He didn't deserve to die after only ten days of life.

 

Niall and Harry spent most of those thirty-six hours by their sons side, talking to him, touching his hands and feet, and Harry sang to him, hoping it would soothe him. Niall didn't know if it was soothing Finn or not but it was certainly helping him. Harry's voice always soothed him. From his deep, slow drawl, to his sexy, rough singing voice, it all soothed Niall. He would always ask Harry to sing to him in the beginning of their relationship, at all different times of the day. Sometimes at night before they went to sleep, sometimes while in the kitchen making dinner, and sometimes even over Skype when Harry was on the road and Niall was missing him so much. His voice was amazing and Finnegan was a lucky little boy to get to hear it singing him lullabies.

 

Finally, after thirty-six hours of fear, of praying to a God they weren't even sure they believed in, of no sleep, and barely eating, they got the word that Finn had pulled through the worst and was on his way to recovering. When the Doctor gave them the news, they both broke down crying, sinking down into the chairs in the waiting area and sobbing into each others necks. Niall's Mum and Aunt were there, Bobby and Greg had made the drive as soon as they heard, but they all quietly stood off to the side, letting Niall and Harry be relieved and happy together. They deserved a few moments to gather themselves and whisper 'I love you's' to each other, kiss the tears off each others faces.

 

A few days after that, they got to hold Finn again, the both of them laughing through their tears as he made cooing noises and rubbed his cheek over the hair on Niall's chest. Apparently Harry wasn't the only one who loved Niall's chest hair.

 

They were happy again, their son was getting stronger and hopefully would only be in the hospital for three more weeks, yet something wasn't quite right with Harry and it was his Mother in Law who noticed it.

 

It was on a Saturday when Niall was in London visiting Rory, when Maura got him to leave the hospital for a bit to have lunch with her at a cafe. She didn't bring it up while they sat and ate sandwiches and chips. They mostly talked about Rory and Finn and different things going on in their lives at the moment. It wasn't until after lunch as they strolled in the winter sunshine through a park, that she brought it up.

 

“It's not too cold today. Bit mild actually,” Maura said as she took in a big breath of fresh air. “Come sit over here with me for a bit. I want to talk to you about something.”

 

Harry didn't argue. Finn was doing great, was still sleeping when Harry called the hospital to check on him after they finished eating. He didn't have to rush back and he was enjoying the sun, warm on his face. He took a seat next to Maura on a bench, his hands in the pockets of his peacoat, his head bowed while he waited for her to speak.

 

“I'll get right to it then. Never really known any other way really.” She said, her head tipped back and her eyes squinted shut against the brightness of the sun “You haven't been yourself all week. I know it's been a hard week, with Finn being so sick but he's fine now and yet something is still off with you and I'm afraid it's partly my fault. I want to apologize to you for that.”

 

“What?” Harry's head snapped around to face Maura, his mouth gaping open.”You don't owe me any apologies. You haven't done anything wrong.”

 

“Oh but I have,” She smiled sadly “Ever since Niall told me about the dream he had, I haven't shut up about Aiden. That's so terribly insensitive of me, Harry and I'm truly sorry.”

 

“It's-” Harry's brow furrowed as he looked down at the ground, digging into the grass with the toe of his boot “You don't have to apologize for that. He was your son in law. You loved him. I don't begrudge you that.”

 

“Yes, he was my son in law and yes I loved him but you're my son in law now and I love _you_. It's important to me that you know that. You're no less important to me than Aiden was. I don't love you any less just because I knew him first.” Maura said, her tone firm “I would never, ever want to hurt you but I did. I know I did. No matter how much you might deny it, I know I did. I'm sure it also wasn't fun for you that my talking about him meant Niall was talking about him. I know you're not jealous of Aiden. You and Niall both went into your relationship knowing you were both in love before and it didn't end by choice. That doesn't make it any easier to keep having him thrown in your face.”

 

“Maura...” Harry closed his eyes against the sting of tears in his eyes. He felt one of Maura's dainty hands slip into his and squeezed it, grateful for the comfort “I don't even know what to say. I wish I could say you're right but I can't. I am jealous. I never was but since that dream I've been so jealous and I've felt sick about it every minute of every day. I'm jealous of a dead man. I'm so ashamed of myself.”

 

“Harry, no,” Maura turned sideways on the bench, taking both of Harry's hands in hers and ducking her head so she could see Harry's face “You have nothing to be ashamed of. This is my fault. I was so struck by that dream. I believe in heaven. I believe we all go to a better place when we die. I believe our loved ones are watching over us. When Niall told me about the dream, I just knew it was Aiden protecting Finn for Niall. I believed he found a way to communicate with Niall and that's all I could think about. It was a miracle and I just couldn't stop talking about it. No man could be expected not to be jealous when his Mother in Law is being an idiot.”

 

“I don't blame you for anything. Truly. I mean it when I say you should talk about or think about Aiden whenever you want,” Harry says with a sigh “You wanna know what the worst part about all this is? I'm scared. I don't believe in everything like you do. I don't know what that dream meant or if it was Aiden's spirit or what. It doesn't matter. I'm scared that Niall is going to fall in love with Aiden again. Even though he's dead. I'm scared Niall thinks like you do, that it was really Aiden looking out for him and it's going to bring back all of Niall's old feelings. Is that not the most ridiculous thing you've ever heard? He's dead and I'm worrying he'll take Niall away from me. I'm worried that his memory will somehow steal Niall from me. I'm so pathetic. I don't know if I've ever hated myself as much as I do now.”

 

“Harry, no!” Maura dropped his hands and grabbed his face in her hands instead “You are not pathetic and you shouldn't hate yourself. It's not ridiculous how you're feeling. They're your feelings and you should never apologize for them. You don't have to be scared though. Niall loves you more than anything.”

 

“I know he does. I love him too. I'm just being silly. If the roles were reversed, Niall wouldn't be feeling like this. He wouldn't be jealous of Jack. It's irrational and stupid and I just wish I could make those feelings of fear and jealousy go away.”

 

“Harry,” Maura dropped her hands from his face and took one of his hands in hers again, the other hand resting on his bicep “I think it's probably time I told you something. I never did, for two reasons. I didn't want to be that Mother who insinuated herself into her sons marriage for one. The second reason is because I felt like if I said anything, it would be disrespectful of Aiden's memory. I really think it's time you hear it now. I think you need too.”

 

“I'm not following,” Harry frowned, taking a tissue out of his pocket and wiping his nose quickly before putting it back in his pocket.

 

“Niall loved Aiden. They were happy together and if he hadn't died, they probably would have been married for the rest of their lives. With that said, his love for Aiden doesn't really compare to how he feels about you and I knew it the very first time I met you. Dont't get me wrong, I'm not saying he didn't love Aiden, it's just different with you, more intense."

 

“What?” Harry whispered, his whole face slack with shock “What do you mean?”

 

“I remember when Niall told me he met someone, someone he loved very much. I was so overwhelmed with happiness because it had been four years almost, since Aiden died, and he hadn't been in a relationship since then. I don't think he even dated much. It was hard for me to watch because, you know Niall, he's always the life of the party, happy, loud, laughing, joking, and all that was gone for a long time. He got it back eventually and the only thing missing from his life was someone to love him. So when he told me about you, and that he wanted me to meet you, I cried for a long time after we hung up the phone. It was like a big weight was lifted off of my chest, knowing he was happy again.” Maura stopped for a moment, laughing at herself when she had to wipe tears from her eyes from just thinking about it.

 

“Then I met you and the very moment I did I felt it. I felt the pull between you, I saw the passion and fire in every look or touch you shared. I listened to the way Niall spoke about you, how he looked at you when you weren't looking and it took my breath away. I'd never in my life seen my son look at someone in that way. Like you were his whole world. I never saw that with Aiden. When I looked at my sons face when he looked at Aiden there was a fondness there that showed me he loved him a lot. Then when I look at his face when he looks at you there's that same fondness but so much more. There's that fire between you that can be felt by anyone who is in the same room as you. There's this connection between you two that is so strong you don't even need to communicate verbally sometimes. It's so intense and like nothing I've ever seen before. It's breathtaking really, and I consider it an honour that I get to witness how much you mean to each other.”

 

“You can- you can see all that? When you look at us?” Harry asked, his voice trembling as he tried to keep himself from turning into a sobbing mess in the middle of the park.

 

“Yes love,” Maura chuckled at him “I can. I'm not the only one either. Even Bobby, who is probably the least romantic person I've ever met, noticed it. Willie, Sean, your Mum, your sister, they've all talked about it. Especially at your wedding. After the vows when we were all still there on the beach before the reception, you and Niall stood there with eyes only for each other. You were so cute. I couldn't hear what Niall was saying to you but he kissed your cheek at one point, until those dimples he loves so much popped out and then he kept kissing your cheek with a silly smile on his face until you started blushing and laughing. It was the sweetest moment I've ever seen. Me, your Mum, and Gemma started crying. We had to walk away and compose ourselves.”

 

“I remember that,” Harry looked down at his feet, a shy smile on his face “He was telling me how proud he was to be my husband.”

 

“That doesn't surprise me. I always suspected my youngest was a secret romantic. He just needed the right person to bring it out in him.” Maura smiled and wrapped her arm around Harry's shoulders, pulling him into her side.

 

“Thank you,” Harry murmured after ten minutes of silence. He was a lot taller than his Mother in Law, even sitting down, yet he still managed to slide his body down enough so he could rest his head on her shoulder “I lost my head a bit. You helped me get it back on straight before I ended up doing something stupid and making a fool out of myself in front of Niall.”

 

“It was my pleasure, love,” Maura squeezed him tight “Are you ready to go back to the hospital now?”

 

“Yeah,” Harry sat up straight, stretching his arms up over his head for a minute “I want to hold my son.”

 

 

~~~ 

 

 

 

The next few weeks passed quickly. Harry and Niall kept with the routine they created of spending the week in Dublin while one of them would go back to London for the weekend to be with Rory. Finn was steadily getting stronger, not having any more setbacks since he had that fever. He didn't seem to be showing any signs of withdrawal from the methadone but the Doctor told them their Pediatrician in London would keep an eye on things over the first years of Finn's life, not only for that but simply because he was premature.

 

Harry's thirtieth birthday came and went while they were in Dublin. He refused to go home to London and celebrate with friends and family, not while Finn was still in the hospital in Dublin. Louis got him to agree to a blow out party at some point once they're back in London, though. He said he didn't care if they had to wait until July, they were having a party and everyone was getting wasted.

 

Harry still celebrated. He just didn't have a big party. His Mum and Robin were in Dublin visiting since Finn was allowed more visitors by that point, and Maura, Bobby, Greg, Denise and Theo drove to Dublin, while Rory flew over from London. They all had a lovely dinner at Niall's favourite restaurant in Dublin. He brought Harry there the first time they ever visited Dublin together and Harry loved it just as much so it was a good choice. They were at the restaurant for four hours, continuing to have drinks and chatting with each other long after they finished dessert.

 

Later, when they went back to the hotel, Niall threw himself across the bed and stuck a big red bow on his head telling Harry he could have his way with him in anyway he wanted.

 

Apparently, what Harry wanted, was to get Niall naked, then take what was left over from the cake they surprised him with at the restaurant and rub all the icing from it all over Niall's body. It was messy and Niall couldn't stop laughing, at one point laughing so hard it was just silent laughter that shook his whole body. Of course that set Harry off and every time he licked his tongue out to lap up some icing off Niall's chest, he broke out into giggles and eventually ended up falling on top of Niall, getting the icing all over his own naked body.

 

They ended up licking icing off of each other once they calmed down, then Harry quietly asked Niall if he could fuck him, something they actually hadn't done in awhile. For months it ended up being Niall fucking Harry, even though they started switching sometimes ever since their honeymoon when Harry fucked Niall for the first time. Neither one of them minded. Their sex life was spectacular either way but on that night, Harry really wanted to be buried in his husband and Niall was more than happy to oblige.

 

Finally, five weeks had passed, Finn's original due date had come and gone, and now it was the night before Finn was being released from the hospital. They had spent the evening at the hospital like normal, holding their baby, rocking him and best of all feeding him. The time came when he was ready for formula and James spent a good amount of time showing Harry and Niall how to do everything from making up a bottle, to how to hold Finn when they fed him, how to get him to take the nipple, and how to burp him.

 

It was rough going for a bit. It was hard to get Finn to accept the nipple and figure out how to suck on it. Niall and Harry both found themselves frustrated and a bit dejected but James assured them it was normal and something a lot of parents go through and not just with preemies.

 

Eventually, Finn figured it out. He was in Niall's arms and Niall was gently and patiently trying to coax him into taking it. When he did, Niall and Harry both held their breath, waiting to see if he's start sucking. He did and they both wanted to cheer and jump up and down. They wanted to hold him tight and kiss him all over, tell him how good he was and how proud they were of him. They didn't want to disturb him though, so they settled for Harry getting his first feeding on video.

 

Now, after spending the evening with their son, they were back in their hotel room, making sure everything was packed and they had everything they needed to take Finn home.

 

“Can you believe he's finally coming home tomorrow?” Harry gushes for the tenth time that night “To his own room, his own little cot, his own toys. I'm so happy, Niall. I can't even- I don't even know what to do with myself. I can't even stay still.”

 

“I'm excited too,” Niall laughs, reaching out and snagging Harry by the waist as he paces in front of him, pulling him down onto his lap. He places feather light kisses over Harry's bare shoulder, over his collarbone and up along his neck until Harry makes a tiny humming noise in the back of his throat and curls his body in around Niall “I can't wait to have the four of us together, under one roof.”

 

“Yeah,” Harry smiles, Niall can feel it against his neck where Harry has his face pressed “Oh! I got you something.”

 

“You got me something?” Niall asks, confused.

 

“Yeah,” Harry pushes himself up off Niall's lap and digs around in his small carry on bag that's sitting on the bed. He takes out a small box then walks back over to Niall, sitting down on his lap again and kissing him softly “Here. I hope you like it.”

 

Niall takes the small box in his hands and looks up at Harry “I love everything you've ever given me darlin'. I'll love this too, whatever it is. What's it for though? It's not my birthday or anything.”

 

“Just open it,” Harry says “Go on.”

 

With a tiny smile on his face and a shake of his head, he gently opens up the box, sucking in a deep breath as soon as he sees whats inside because he knows exactly what it means without Harry having to say anything. He explains anyway.

 

“I know you don't wear jewellery very often, just your wedding band, but I thought of this and had a feeling you wouldn't mind wearing it.” Harry explains.

 

He's right. Niall won't mind at all. He can't wait to put it on. It's a 18ct gold necklace, nothing flashy or too expensive because Harry knows Niall would hate that. There are two, simple letters hanging from the necklace, a R and a F. Rory and Finnegan.

 

“Harry,” Niall has to clear his throat because he's choking up “It's beautiful. It's perfect. Thank you.”

 

“You like it?” Harry says against Niall's cheek, his lips brushing over the stubble there.

 

“I love it. It's amazing. I'll never take it off.” Niall turns his face so that Harry's lips brush against his. The arm he has around Harry's waist tightens as he holds Harry as close to him as possible “I love you. Thank you for doing this for me.”

 

“You're welcome. I wanted you to have something. I have the tattoos. You have this. When we have more kids, we'll keep adding letters.” Harry says.

 

“Yeah we will,” Niall grins “Put it on for me?”

 

Harry nodded and carefully removed the necklace from the box, unclasping it and leaning into Niall so he can reach behind his neck to clasp it. It should have only taken ten seconds but the way Harry was pressed against Niall meant that Harry's nipple was right in Niall's line of vision and of course Niall couldn't resist sticking his tongue out and licking over Harry's nipple then taking it between his teeth and making Harry shiver and forget what he was doing.

 

“Fuck. Baby,” Harry sounded breathless “I'm trying to- I'm trying-”

 

“Hmm?” Niall hums, blowing air over Harry's wet nipple “Trying to what, darlin'?”

 

“Fuck. I'm trying to clasp your necklace,” Harry moans when Niall puckers his lips and sucks Harry's nipple into his mouth “Oh fuck. Niall...Niall _please._ Before I drop this and we lose it somewhere.”

 

Niall pulls back and smiles sweetly at Harry, his lips slick with saliva, his cheeks pinking up with arousal. Harry can feel himself start to grow hard from the sight and somehow manages to clasp the necklace around Niall's neck with shaking fingers.

 

“All done?” Niall murmurs, his pink tongue coming out to lick over his lips “Can I fuck you now?”

 

Harry groaned and stood up from Niall's lap long enough to switch position so he was straddling him instead “Now that I've got your necklace clasped you can take me outside and fuck me up against the entrance of this hotel for all I care.”

 

Niall snorted and slid his hands down over Harry's shirtless back until they were slipping down the back of his jeans and cupping his arse “Fuck that. Nobody gets to see how you look when you're being fucked but me. Nobody gets to see how pretty you look when you come but me.”

 

“God yes!” Harry threw his head back, moaning, his hips pressing down over Niall's “Fuck, baby. Yes. Only you. Don't want anyone else to see.”

 

“Better not,” Niall says, tipping his head up to kiss Harry hard, fast and dirty. Their tongues tangling together, whimpers and moans sounding from deep in their throats. Niall's fingers were digging into Harry's arse, Harry's fingers were buried in Niall's hair, gripping it tight between his fingers while his hips picked up a steady pace against Niall's.

 

Sometime later, they were both naked, Harry nearly coming at the sight of his husband wearing nothing but that necklace that meant so much to the both of them. Niall had Harry bent over the table with his arse sticking out, dropping to his knees on the floor and spreading Harry's cheeks apart so he can lick and suck at Harry's rim just the way he knows makes Harry weak in the knees.

 

He was relentless, licking, sucking, nibbling until Harry was quivering and right on the edge, then he stopped, silencing Harry's whine with his lips. Kissing him hard and walking him backward until they reached the bed and toppled on to it, Niall covering Harry's body with his own.

 

“I love you,” Niall whispered against Harry's lips “I love you, I love you, I love you.

 

Harry lifted one leg up so that his foot was flat on the bed, giving Niall room to slip right between his thighs. He fan his hands over Niall's back, loving that his touch was the reason for the goosebumps on Niall's skin. “I need you. So much.”

 

Niall moved his body to the side, a bottle of lube gripped in one hand while his other hand caressed Harry everywhere. A thumb over his nipple, an index fingers tracing the lines of his abs, his knuckles gently brushing against the soft skin on the inside of Harry's thighs as he pushes Harry's legs apart to get to his hole.

 

He fingers Harry slowly, bringing him to the edge again and again before pulling back without letting him come. Harry was a mess underneath him, whimpering, panting, sweating, writhing, desperate for release. Niall was sure he'd never seen anything as beautiful in his life.

 

When he finally sinks into Harry, he keeps the pace slow, grinding his hips in an easy rhythm, enjoying the feel of their bodies working together so effortlessly toward their release. They didn't have to think at all, their bodies working as if they were one, their fingers and lips automatically brushing against the most sensitive places on their flushed skin. Niall's hands always gravitating to Harry's hips, the only area on his body that had any bit of pudge at all. He loved to sink his fingers into that softness, loved the noises Harry made when he did. Harry's hands always gravitating to Niall's back where he knew Niall loved having the hair at the nape of his neck tugged on, where he knew Niall liked when he dug his nails into the skin where his back muscles would ripple as he worked his cock in and out of Harry at a furious pace.

 

When they were both sweaty and on the verge of release, Niall picked up the pace and pounded into Harry until they were both coming, Niall swallowing Harry's moans with his tongue.

 

Niall stayed on top of Harry once they came down, kissing him sweetly until their lips were so swollen they hurt. “Harry...” Niall's lips brushed over Harry's cheek then down along his neck, finally stopping to press a tender guess on Harry's shoulder “Do you know how happy you make me? I feel like my heart is going to explode out of my chest.”

 

Harry wraps his arms around Niall's neck and pulls him down until they were pressed together chest to chest “Me too. I love you so much I don't know what to do sometimes. My heart feels so full, like it's too big for my chest and it's going to come spilling out.

 

“The best day of my life was when you came to my house and told me you loved me. You made me see you meant it, that I wasn't a substitute for Jack. You didn't give up until I knew that. I was so scared, so afraid to go all in. You made it so easy. Loving you is so easy. Now here we are, about to bring our baby home from the hospital, to his big brother. I'm so, so happy and it's all thanks to you darlin'” Niall says, getting choked up with every word.

 

They're silent for a long time after that. After Niall got a wet cloth to clean them up, they slipped under the sheets, Harry on his back with Niall half on top of him, their legs tangled together, two of their hands linked together, resting lightly on Harry's stomach, and Niall's head on Harry's shoulder. Niall would press his lips against the pulse point in Harry's neck every so often, his nose brushing lightly over Harry's jaw.

 

“Love you,” Harry finally breaks the silence, sounding like he was right on the verge of sleep.

 

“Love you, too, darlin'” Niall sighed, shifting his body even more on top of Harry.

 

They fell asleep exactly like that and seven hours later when they woke up, neither of them had moved an inch.

 

 

~~~

 

 

“What time is it?” Niall asks the next afternoon when the car Harry's PA hired to pick them up from the airport arrived in their driveway.

 

“Almost three,” Harry says quietly, his eyes never leaving Finn who was fast asleep in his car seat.

 

“Rory will be home from school soon,” Niall's grin was huge “We'll have time to get Finn and our luggage inside and get settled before he gets here.”

 

“Yeah. I'm so excited my hands are shaking,” Harry laughs, lifting his hands to show Niall “I think I'll grab the luggage. You get Finn.”

 

The driver had their bags out of the car and laying next to the front door by the time they both climbed out of the backseat. Harry walked ahead and tipped the driver then unlocked the door and brought their bags inside, pushing them aside to deal with later. Niall walked in behind him holding their sleeping son in his car seat.

 

“Welcome home Finnegan,” Niall whispered to his son once he set the car seat down on the couch. He bent down and gently took the hat off his head, pressing a kiss to the tiny patch of dark hair on his sons head. He didn't have much yet but what he had was so soft, Niall could spend all day rubbing his cheek over it.

 

“He's so ridiculously cute. Look at him! He's doing that little pout again,” Harry giggled “I'm in love with him. I just want to pick him up and keep him with me always.”

 

“I know the feeling,” Niall smiled fondly. He undid the straps of the car seat and carefully lifted their son out, settling him in the crook of his arm “Can you help me get this coat off him? It's cold outside but warm in here. I don't want him to get too hot. We can keep his jumper on over his onesie.”

 

Harry nodded his head and they made quick work of getting Finn's coat and boots off so he'd be more comfortable. He didn't wake up while they did it, but the minute they were done and Niall had him cradled against his body in the crook of his arm, he cuddled closer, turning his face in and rubbing his cheek against Niall's jumper.

 

“Oh my God. I can't handle when he does cute stuff like that. He's gonna kill me,” Harry groaned, sitting his butt down on the floor in front of the couch and snapping pictures on his I-Phone.

 

“He's precious that's for sure,” Niall cooed down at his son, the look on his face nearly taking Harry's breath away. Harry always knew he would love seeing Niall with their children but now that he's actually getting to see him with a tiny little baby...he's not so sure his heart can take it.

 

“Hey Niall?” Harry put his phone down on the coffee table and got up on his knees to kneel next to the couch and look at Finn “The speculation about us having a baby has been going crazy since the paps saw us in a baby store a few months ago. Now that we know Finn is okay and he's home, do you think we should announce something on twitter? Maybe just a few words with a picture?”

 

“Sure darlin'” Niall lifts his eyes from Finn to look at Harry “Whatever you want to do is fine. No matter what we do, the paps will eventually get pictures of him. At least this way we have control over what we post. I think your fans would love that. They've been so supportive of you your whole career and when I came along they supported me just as much. I have no problem sharing photos with them.”

 

“Okay. I'll post something when I have a picture I really want to share,” Harry says, standing up and kissing Niall's cheek “Want some tea? I'll boil the kettle. Finn will probably wake up soon for his feeding.”

 

“Thanks darlin'. I'd love some tea actually.” Niall smiled up at his husband.

 

Harry went into the kitchen to boil the kettle and make their tea. He also put some biscuits on a plate for them to snack on. They missed lunch, too busy discharging Finn and getting to the airport.

 

When he made it back to the living room ten minutes later, Finn was just beginning to wake up in Niall's arms. He wasn't crying yet, just moving his eyes around until they fell on Niall's face. Niall smiled at him and lifted him up to kiss his cheek and rest his tummy on Niall's chest. He spoke to him in quiet whispers, Finn not taking his eyes off Niall's face for one minute.

 

“I think someone finds their daddy's face just as handsome as I do,” Harry cooed. He set their tea and biscuits on the coffee table and sat on the couch next to Niall, cuddling into him and letting Finn wrap his hand around his index finger.

 

“I don't think he cares about my face,” Niall laughed “He's fixated on it because babies are nearsighted at first. Remember James said that's why he always stared up at our faces when we fed him?”

 

“Mmhmm but I still say he thinks you're handsome,” Harry said, laughing when Niall scoffed.

 

They spent the next five minutes listening to Finn's gurgling noises and watching his face as his eyes would roam over their faces. He had pretty eyes. They were blue but not the same colour as Niall and Rory's. It was a much darker blue.

 

Around three thirty they heard a key in the door and knew Rory was home. Niall handed Finn to Harry and called out to let Rory know where they were.

 

“Hi parents,” Rory said, a bright smile on his face. Niall laughed and lunged forward to grab him, hugging him tight and kissing his cheek over and over again until he was laughing his happy, carefree laugh that Niall and Harry both loved so much.

 

“I missed you. I don't like only seeing you every second weekend.” Niall pouted. “Jesus Christ. Have you gotten taller _again_?”

 

“Dunno,” Rory shrugged “Haven't measured myself. Probably. I'm sixteen. I'm supposed to be growing. That's what we do. I mean, in a month, you'll notice Finn has grown bigger. It's a miracle really.”

 

“Oh fuck off you cheeky bugger,” Niall says, poking Rory in the stomach.

 

“Dad!” Rory gasped, slapping his hand over Niall's mouth “Don't curse in front of my little brother. You'll corrupt him. That's my job.”

 

“Hi Rory,” Harry says, rolling his eyes at the two of them “Would you like to officially meet your little brother? You only got to see him through the window of the nursery when you came to Dublin.”

 

“Yes! I want to hold him. Gimmie gimmie,” Rory steps away from Niall and sits down on the couch next to Harry making grabby hands.

 

Harry laughs and carefully hands the baby to Rory, about to instruct him on how to hold him properly but to his and Niall's surprise, Rory already knew what to do. He cradled Finn on his lap, one hand behind his head supporting it and lifting it up enough so Finn could see him and the other hand gently tickling his tummy through the jumper he was wearing.

 

“Hi, Finny. I'm your big brother,” He spoke softly “You're not used to my voice yet but you will be soon, now that you're home. Look at you. You're the cutest baby. Of course you are. You're related to me and Dad aren't you little one? We're the handsomest dudes around. Ask your Papa, he'll tell you. He looks at Daddy like he wants to eat him most of the time.”

 

“I do not!” Harry smacked Rory's arm, an indignant tone to his voice.

 

Rory snorted “That's the funniest thing I've heard in five years. The both of you look at each other like that. Sometimes I wonder if I'm going to come home and find you shagging on the table or something. Oh God...you haven't shagged on the table have you? I eat there!”

 

“Excuse you!” Harry folds his arms over his chest, trying to look put out but really he's biting his lip to keep from laughing “Not only have we shagged on the table but we shagged in your bed too!”

 

“We didn't! We didn't!” Niall roars with laughter after seeing the look on Rory's face. Finn immediately tries to twist his head in Rory's hand, trying to look upside down to find Niall.

 

“Oh look!” Rory's eyes widen “You're looking for Daddy aren't you? You can hear him laughing. You know his voice huh? There he is!” Rory lifts Finn up against his chest, turning his body so Finn can see Niall.

 

“Hiii!” Niall smiled wide, waving his hands out in front of him “I'm right here Bub. You recognize Daddy's voice don't you? We've spent the past six weeks having little chats haven't we?” Niall came forward to let Finn grip his finger “My three boys are all right here.” Niall said fondly, then he bent down and kissed Finn's chubby cheek “I love you,” Then Rory's cheek “I love you,” Then Harry's lips “And I love you.”

 

“We love you, too, Daddy,” Rory said in a baby voice, waving one of Finn's little hands in the air. “Don't we Finny? Best Dad in the world. You'll see.”

 

“Thank you,” Niall whispered, getting choked up. He threaded his fingers through Rory's hair, pushing it back off his forehead and kissing his forehead, his lips lingering there for a moment “I really missed you a lot. I missed so much over the years. I hate being away from you.”

 

“It's okay,” Rory held Finn up and kissed his cheek “I'm not upset. You were gone for a very good reason and I was fine. I didn't even need Louis here but he's fun so it was all good. Besides, we'll have plenty of time together. If I pick a football club here in London, I can live here. I'll still be here when I'm thirty with my wife and three kids.”

 

“Speaking of kids,” Harry gestured toward Finn “How are you so good with them? You knew exactly how to hold him.”

 

Rory shrugged “I've been around kids for a lot of my life. Mam's best friend in Dublin had a couple of kids a few years before we moved here. Then when I moved here and became friends with Tyler, I always helped him when he babysat his siblings. He's the oldest and his Mum had a baby a couple months after I moved here and she just had another one right before I found out about you. His parents work long hours. We don't mind helping.”

 

“So...if we asked you to make Finn's bottle now, you'd know how to do it?” Harry asked, clearly impressed.

 

“Yeah,” Rory laughed “Is that your passive aggressive way of asking me to go make his bottle?”

 

“It wasn't,” Harry smirked “But you can definitely go do that.”

 

Rory rolled his eyes and stood up with Finn secure in his arms “Okay. This one's coming with me though. Right Finny? You're gonna help me make your dinner. Yummy milk!”

 

Harry and Niall watched wide eyed as Rory walked out of the living room with his brother, talking away to him about anything and everything.

 

“He's amazing,” Harry shook his head “I don't think it'll matter how long we have him here, I'll always learn new, impressive things about him.”

 

“He's a natural. He's going to be a great big brother,” Niall agrees, reaching down to get his tea from the coffee table and taking a long sip. “I love him so much it hurts. Everyone always says when you have kids that's how you'll feel but I don't think I could have ever been prepared for this feeling.”

 

“I feel the same way and he's not even blood related to me. I like it though. I like loving someone that much.” Harry holds out his arm, motioning to Niall to sit down next to him. Once he did, Harry wrapped an arm around him and pulled him close, Niall falling into him so easy and naturally, tucking his legs up under him.

 

“Alright!” Rory walked back in a few minutes later with Finn's bottle “Oh look Finny, our Dad's are cuddling. Again. Don't worry, you'll get used to it, I'm not sure they're aware they're actually two separate people with two separate bodies.”

 

“You'll be the same way when you meet the girl of your dreams,” Harry smirks at him.

 

“I hope not,” Rory sits down and arranges Finn so he can drink his bottle “I mean, at least not for a long time. I just want to play Football right now and hopefully make it professionally. I don't have time for distractions.”

 

“You can have your career and still have a girlfriend, Rory. You just need to find the right girl who understands you'll be busy a lot, someone independent who will have her own career and be happy doing her own thing while you're travelling for matches.” Niall tells his son, frowning at the fact Rory seems to want to make his life all about Football.

 

“Yeah. I found that with your Dad. I was putting albums out and doing world tours and he understood that. He was happy to support me and my career as long as I respected he had his own career and he wasn't about to drop it to follow me around the world. It was tough, sure, there were times we didn't see each other for three straight months because he was working and he only gets so many weeks of vacation a year and when I'm in America and only have one day between shows it's not enough time to fly all the way back here. We missed each other a lot but we weren't sitting around pining away for each other. We were both busy working and your Dad has a ton of friends he always spent time with. You just need to find someone like that.” Harry says.

 

“You're only sixteen, I'm not saying you need to have a girlfriend right now. I'm saying if the right girl comes along, be it in five years, or ten years, don't say no just because of your career. Keep an open mind. You're such a smart kid Rory. There's no doubt in my mind you can juggle a career and a family if that's what you want someday.” Niall says, smiling fondly as he watches his oldest son feed his youngest.

 

“We'll see,” Rory picked up the cloth he brought in with him and wiped a bit of milk from Finn's mouth “Plenty of time for all that.”

 

“In the meantime, I'm sure there will be women coming and going from your life. Please don't knock one of them up, especially not while you're a teenager like I was,” Niall tipped his head back to rest on the back of the couch and groaned.

 

Rory lifted his head and quirked an eyebrow at his Dad “Is this you giving me permission to be some kind of man whore?”

 

“No!” Niall lifted his head back up and glared at Rory “I'm just saying to be careful. You don't seem to want a serious relationship for quite awhile. That doesn't mean you'll be a monk.”

 

“Oh my God,” Rory snorted “Please do keep talking. This just keeps getting better and better.”

 

“Rory,” Niall said sternly “I know being cheeky is part of your personality but I'm being serious right now and I'd like for you to be as well.”

 

“Okay,” Rory nodded “I'm sorry,” He put Finn's bottle on the table next to him and lifted him over his shoulder so he could burp him “I will be careful. I'm not going to do something stupid. I love kids but I don't want any for like, fifteen years so...you don't have to worry about me. I won't be reckless.”

 

“Okay,” Niall said with a smile, just as Finn let out a huge burp. ”Well there ya go!” Niall cracked up laughing “Nobody can say he's not related to me.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


	3. Part Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part Three
> 
> Niall, Harry, Rory and Finn facing ups and downs together as a family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello Everybody! 
> 
> It took awhile because I didn't want to say goodbye to this series. I know I have to, though, because it's probably gone on for too long already and I'm sure people who read "Broken" probably haven't stuck around for this long. That's okay though! Series aren't for everybody and I'm grateful to everyone who loved this series enough to keep reading. It means so much!
> 
> There will be a short epilogue after this. Just to clue things up and get a peak into the future years later. It won't be extremely long, don't worry. This right here is the last long part of the story. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy it! Comments and kudos are very much appreciated :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

The world officially found out about Finn two weeks later. Harry and Niall had spent those two weeks at home with their son. Niall had taken paternity leave and while six weeks of that was used up over in Ireland, he still had almost two months left and Harry was incredibly grateful to have his husband by his side as they adjusted to having an infant and got into a stable routine.

 

Over those two weeks, hundreds of pictures were taken and late one night while Niall was feeding Finn in the nursery and putting him back to sleep before they turned in themselves, Harry picked out some pictures to put on twitter.

 

The first one he chose was of Finn by himself. He was laying in his bassinet in the living room in an adorable white onesie with giraffes on it. Niall had been talking to him and Finn's eyes were wide open, staring up at his Daddy and making the most adorable cooing noises while kicking his legs out. Niall of course took pictures and Harry thought one of those was the perfect one to introduce their son to the world. It showed off his dark hair, blue eyes and chubby cheeks the best.

 

The second photo he chose was one Niall wasn't even aware he took. Harry had run out to pick up a few things at the store and while he was gone, Finn had apparently been a bit fussy. Niall had gotten him from his cot and brought him into their bedroom, propping himself up on some pillows and laying Finn on his bare chest. The contact immediately calmed him and when Harry got back he stood in the doorway of their bedroom, quietly taking pictures of a sleeping Daddy and baby.

 

The third one he chose was one Rory took of him and Niall with Finn. Harry was holding Finn and Niall was draped over the back of the couch with his chin on Harry's shoulder smiling down at their son. It was one of Harry's favourites because the look on Niall's face said it all.

 

The fourth one he chose wasn't a picture but a video of just Rory with Finn. Rory was laying flat on his back on his bed with his head down near the bottom of the bed and his legs near the top. He had his knees up with his feet planted firmly on the bed and he had Finn resting on his thighs, supporting him by cupping one hand behind his head. He was talking to Finn in a funny baby voice and lifting up his shirt to repeatedly blow raspberries on his tummy. Finn loved it and was making high pitched squeals and flailing his arms around everywhere. Harry had been standing at the bottom of the bed holding the phone up above them, taking the video. When he asked Rory if he could post it, Rory said he didn't mind.

 

The last one he chose was a picture of the four of them together that Louis took for them. Harry and Niall were sitting next to each other on their bed one Saturday morning when Rory came in and threw himself over their sprawled out legs. Finn had just fallen asleep in Harry's arms and that's how Louis found them some time later. He took the picture of three beaming faces and one sleeping baby and quickly declared them the world's cutest family.

 

Harry posted everything with a short message that simply said “Our beautiful family. Meet Finnegan Robert Horan, our son.”

 

They went to sleep after Harry posted the pictures and woke up in the morning to both their phones going crazy. They both had people texting or calling them, congratulating them on their new son. Their close friends and family knew already but they had a lot of other friends and acquaintances they hadn't had a chance to tell yet. Celebrity friends from LA they don't see too often anymore now that Harry isn't on tour.

 

“Most everyone is very kind as usual. I lucked out having such amazing fans,” Harry said to Niall as he scrolled through twitter.

 

“Didn't luck out,” Niall said sleepily, rubbing at his eyes like a little boy “You're an amazing person. They know that. Why wouldn't they want to support you?”

 

“Oh look!” Harry started laughing “Lots of love for Rory again.”

 

Niall rolled his eyes and grabbed the phone from Harry “If your teenage fans want to lust after my son, fine. Your thirty something fans? I'm not feelin' that. Fucking cougars. He's sixteen!”

 

“He is but he looks older and he's fit,” Harry shrugged “Though he's like his Dad and doesn't seem to know that.”

 

“What is that supposed to mean?” Niall glares at Harry, making Harry laugh more because he loves grumpy Niall.

 

“It means that ever since I've met you you've been oblivious to how fit you are and the affect you have on people. Especially women who know you're gay yet are convinced they can turn you straight.” Harry rolls his eyes.

 

“I'm not oblivious. I just ignore it. Anyway that's beside the point. What did you mean about Rory?”

 

“Weren't you there when Zuma said all the girls at school follow Rory around like puppies? He thinks it's hilarious because Rory doesn't notice.”

 

“Oh my God,” Niall groans and throws himself back on the pillows “Are we going to have to start worrying about our sixteen year old son having sex?”

 

Harry raised his eyebrow “Did you think we wouldn't? I was having sex at sixteen. Rory was conceived when you were sixteen so we know what you were doing and- ow! Don't hit me! That's spousal abuse.”

 

“I didn't hit you hard you big baby,” Niall says “Seriously Harry, do you think he's having sex?”

 

“I don't know. Ask him if you really want to know,” Harry shrugged.

 

“Oh my God! I can't just come out and ask him that. That's an invasion of privacy and probably really awkward.” Niall stares at Harry, shocked.

 

“Why can't you?” Harry asks, tapping away on his phone “We've always been open with him and he with us. He doesn't embarrass easily. He wouldn't care if you asked him that.”

 

“I don't know...” Niall starts chewing on his fingernails like he always does when he gets nervous. “Do you think I should? I just want him to be safe. We just talked about this two weeks ago with him, telling him to be safe and all that but I was saying those things not thinking he was actually having sex”

 

“I think we should trust him. He's never given us a reason not too,” Harry ran his fingers through Niall's hair “Now, if you don't mind, my virginity is not in question and I'd very much like to be fucked by my husband before Finn wakes up.”

 

Niall barked out a loud laugh, clearly not expecting that to come out of Harry's mouth. He doesn't have to think twice though. He tosses Harry's phone aside and rolls over on top of him, cradling his face in his hands and leaning in for a kiss.

 

~~~

 

Niall nearly chokes on his food a few days later when Harry flat out asks Rory if he's having sex. Rory pauses with a piece of chicken halfway to his mouth.

 

“Not right now, no. I'm eating my dinner. Which I thought was pretty obvious.” Rory looks at Harry likes he's lost his mind.

 

“I didn't mean right now,” Harry huffed “I mean in general. Ever.”

 

“And why do you all of a sudden want to know that?” Rory puts the piece of chicken in his mouth, chewing and looking at Harry with a raised eyebrow.

 

“Because ever since I've been including pictures with you in them on Twitter, some of my fans have taken quite the liking to you and your Dad wants to kill the ones in their twenties and thirties who are quite blunt about liking you.” Harry says, trying to put it in a way other than 'thirty year old women want to fuck you.'

 

“Oh,” Rory chews thoughtfully “I haven't shagged any thirty year old women, no. There was that forty-five year old though. She was quite fit for her age.”

 

“Oh my God,” Niall moans. “I knew it! They've corrupted my baby. He's sixteen! Is that even legal? Rory for fucks sake why would you do that?”

 

“Niall,” Harry says through his laughter “Do you not know your sons personality by now? He was joking.”

 

“Your face!” Rory cackled, pushing his plate away and laying his upper body on the table, his body shaking from laughter.

 

“Oh real mature,” Niall stands up, tossing his napkin onto his plate “The both of you are unbelievable. This isn't funny at all. I'm worried about you, Rory. Sex isn't something to take lightly. You have to be careful or someone could end up pregnant or worse, dead. One mistake and you could contract HIV or any other disease. Not to mention the emotional part of it all. It's a big fucking deal to be intimate with someone. You may think it's easy to just fuck your way through girls without any connection with them and maybe it is easy for some people but not you. You're not that type of person. You have a big heart and it could be broken so easily.”

 

Niall stops for a moment then turns on Harry “ And you...you sit there laughing with him, like its some big joke. How about you start acting like his fucking father and not his best mate, yeah?”

 

Niall leaves the kitchen then and a minute later the front door slams leaving Harry and Rory in shocked silence. Harry swallows a few times, trying to keep control of himself for Rory's sake when in reality he wants to just curl up in a ball and cry.

 

When he looks up at Rory, it's not hard to push his feelings aside. The teenager looks pale and there's a panicked look in his eyes that has Harry jumping up from his chair and walking around the table to Rory.

 

“Are you okay, love?” He asks quietly “Your Dad was just a bit upset. He'll cool off and be back soon. Don't worry about it, yeah?”

 

“No,” Rory shook his head, blinking back the tears in his eyes “He's not just upset. I-I hurt him. He's just trying to look out for me and I laughed at him. He didn't deserve that. Oh my God, Harry-” Rory starts to panic “Why am I so stupid? I should have known I'd go too far one day. That my cheeky attitude would get me in trouble. I wasn't- I wasn't thinking. I went too far. He was just being a good Dad. He's the best Dad. The very best and I-I-”

 

“Shh,” Harry put his hand around Rory's wrist and pulls him up out of the chair and toward the living room so they could sit on the couch. He wraps him up in his arms and kisses his head, biting his lip to keep his own tears at bay when he feels Rory's against his neck.

 

Harry didn't say anything, just let him get it out because Niall was right about one thing, Rory has a big heart and he feels deeply. While most sixteen year old boys would be mortified they cried, Rory never is. He doesn't cry often but when he does he never apologizes for it and is never embarrassed.

 

After awhile, the crying stopped and they just sat in silence until Rory cleared his throat and moved away from Harry a bit.

 

“Do you want me to reheat your dinner?” Harry reached up and tucked a piece of hair behind Rory's ear “You didn't eat much.”

 

“No,” Rory looked down at his hands, twisting them in his shirt “I'm not hungry. I'm sorry. I know you spent time cooking and-”

 

“Stop. Don't apologize. I'll put it away in the fridge for leftovers. It's okay.” Harry assures him.

 

“Thank you. I'm just going to get my homework done,” Rory said, standing up.

 

“Alright. I'll be here if you need me. I love you. Everything is going to be fine. We'll all get some sleep and start fresh in the morning.” Harry smiled, hopefully reassuringly.

 

“Thanks Harry. I love you too. A lot,” Rory said, his voice barely above a whisper.

 

Harry sat there on the couch long after Rory went upstairs. He cried his own silent tears before eventually getting up when Finn woke up for a bottle. He fed him, bathed him and dressed him for bed then rocked him to sleep in the rocking chair in the nursery, singing softly under his breath.

 

Once Finn was asleep he went to check on Rory, finding him curled up on his bed with his books still open, fast asleep. Harry's heart broke and the anger that was simpering in his gut started to rise, making Harry shake from trying to hold it in.

 

He removed Rory's books from his bed, covered him in the duvet and turned out the light, closing the door softly behind him. He went back upstairs to his bedroom and took a shower, dressing in a t-shirt and boxers then sitting in a chair in the sitting area of their bedroom, staring out the window at the dim lights in the windows of the house across the street.

 

He felt Niall's presence in the room before he heard him. It was close to midnight and Harry had been sitting and stewing in his anger for hours.

 

“Get out,” He said evenly, his hands clasped in his lap, his eyes staring straight ahead out the window. Niall stopped whatever he was doing, plunging the room into silence again. He doesn't say anything so Harry says it again “Get out.”

 

“What do you mean get out?” Niall finally spoke, his voice rough.

 

“I mean get out. You're not sleeping here. I don't want to look at your face right now.” Harry spat out, his anger bubbling inside him.

 

“Harry, don't-”

 

“Don't what, Niall?” Harry stood up, spinning around and looking at Niall with fire in his eyes.

 

Niall sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose between thumb and forefinger “It's been a long day. Can we please just go to bed and talk in the morning?”

 

“No. We can't,” Harry's breathing picked up a little as he tried to keep himself in control “I told you to get out. I don't care where you go but you're not sleeping in this bedroom.”

 

“Harry! Don't be unreasonable here-”

 

“Unreasonable??” That made Harry snap “I'm not being unreasonable. Did you even look in on your son downstairs? Do you know what he was doing all night? Crying! He's upset with himself for hurting you. He called himself stupid. He fell asleep with tear stains on his face so no, I'm not fucking being unreasonable. I've never been so fucking angry with you, Niall. My blood is boiling. I can't stand to look at you.”

 

Niall's mouth had dropped open and his face had gone pale “What? Is he alright?”

 

“No he's not alright!! You stormed out of here after telling us both off. He blames himself, thinks he's finally gone too far with his cheeky attitude. He cried because he says you're the best Dad and he hurt you. Some fucking best Dad! You left and didn't come back for hours. I'm the one who stayed. The one who apparently needs to start being his fucking father instead of his best mate.”

 

“Harry I-”

 

“Shut up, Niall!” Harry's voice started to rise “I told you to get out. Do I need to tell you again?”

 

Niall didn't try to speak again. He stood there, staring at Harry with pain and hurt in his clear blue eyes. It made Harry feel sick but he was hurting too and he needed Niall to get away from him so he couldn't worry about how Niall was feeling right now.

 

“Okay. I'll sleep downstairs. I'll bring a monitor and listen for Finn tonight.” Niall finally says, his voice soft.

 

Harry doesn't answer, just stands with his arms crossed over his chest, glaring at Niall until he leaves the room. Once he does, Harry stands by the door, listening to him next door grabbing one of the extra monitors from Finn's room. When he finally hears him go down the stairs, he lets the sob that was building up in his throat out and sunk down onto the floor, the sound of his heartbroken sobs echoing in the room.

 

~~~

 

Niall didn't sleep at all that night. He just laid on the bed in the guest room across from Rory's, staring up at the ceiling and berating himself for losing it the way he did. It wasn't his intention for Rory to put this all on himself and he's never felt so shitty in his life.

 

He hears Rory's bedroom door open at seven and hears him go into the bathroom down the hall. He knows he'll be taking a shower before school so he gets up and heads into his bedroom to wait for him to finish. He needs to talk to him. He can't let his son go one more minute thinking he did something wrong.

 

Ten minutes later, Rory walked back into his bedroom with a towel around his waist and towel drying his hair. He doesn't see Niall at first, not until he finished drying his hair and discarded the towel on the floor.

 

“Dad!” Rory jumped, startled to see Niall in his bedroom.

 

“Hi love,” Niall smiled tiredly at him “Go on and get dressed. I want to talk to you.”

 

Rory nods, his eyes wide, then he grabs a pair of boxers from a drawer and goes into his walk in closet to get dressed for school. He only takes a minute, coming out in a pair of blue skinny jeans and a black t-shirt. He grabs a pair of socks from another drawer and tosses them on the bed before he stands in front of Niall.

 

“Come here,” Niall takes his sons hand and pulls him down onto the bed next to him. He wraps him up in a tight hug, immediately feeling Rory deflate in his arms.

 

“I'm sorry, Dad. I'm so sorry,” Niall could feel his son shaking slightly in his arms, could hear the tears in his voice and it fucking broke his heart “I didn't mean to hurt you. I know you were looking out for me. I'm sorry.”

 

“It's okay,” Niall runs a soothing hand over Rory's back “It's okay, love. You didn't hurt me. You didn't do anything wrong. I lost my temper and instead of having a calm rational conversation, I yelled at you and Harry. I was wrong and I'm truly sorry for that. I hope you can forgive me.”

 

“Of course I forgive you,” Rory presses himself even closer to Niall “You're my Dad. You're the best Dad and I love you. I can't let you take all the blame though. I was being cheeky as usual and Mam always told me my mouth would get me in trouble one day if I wasn't careful. Last night was the wrong time for me to be cheeky. I should have been serious and listened to you.”

 

“You're so smart,” Niall lets out a breathless laugh “I'm so fucking proud of you. That's exactly what I was going to say to you but you figured it out all on your own. There's nothing wrong with being cheeky sometimes. It's often funny and makes us laugh a lot. You just need to learn when it's appropriate and when its not. Especially on the pitch. I expect you're going to have a brilliant career but mouthing off all the time will get you yellow and red cards all the time and you don't want to get that reputation.”

 

“I know. I do. I'm going to work on that. I promise.” Rory pulls back and looks at Niall with wide, earnest eyes.

 

“That's all I can ask of you.” Niall smiles, reaching up and ruffling his sons hair.

 

“Hey Dad? Can I say something about you and Harry without overstepping?” Rory asks carefully.

 

“Well, how about you tell me what you want to say and if I feel you're overstepping I'll let you know?”

 

“Fair enough,” Rory nodded “I just- I think he's really hurt, Dad. I was upset last night but I'm not stupid. I could tell he was struggling to hold back for my sake. I was his first priority. I- could you fix it please? I love Harry. I don't like it when he's hurt.”

 

“Neither do I, love. I said some shitty things that I have to apologize for. I'll talk to Harry after I drop you off at school. Everything will be okay. I don't want you to worry. Concentrate on school, okay?”

 

“Okay,” Rory nodded.

 

“Alright. You finish getting ready for school and I'll get you some breakfast. You want some eggy bread?” Niall asked on his way to the door.

 

“Yeah, sounds great. Thanks!” Rory said then Niall made his way downstairs to get everything started. He was just putting the bread in the pan when he heard Finn over the monitor. He didn't stop what he was doing. He knew Harry would get him.

 

Half an hour later, Niall and Rory had finished eating and while Rory went to brush his teeth, Niall went upstairs to tell Harry where he was going and give him the bottle he prepared for Finn. He knew Finn was a happy baby in the morning and they usually played with him for a bit when he wakes up unless he's actually screaming for his bottle so even though he woke up half an hour ago, Niall wasn't surprised Harry hadn't been down yet.

 

He looked in the nursery first but it was empty so he went across the hall to their bedroom where Harry was cuddling with Finn who was happily flailing his arms about.

 

“I'm bringing Rory to school now. I brought a bottle for Finn.” Niall said carefully, not sure which Harry he was going to get this morning.

 

“Thank you,” Harry said civilly. “I was just going to go down and make one.”

 

“Could I-” Niall stops and clears his throat “Can I see him before I go?”

 

Harry frowned and stood up from the bed, walking over to place their son in Niall's arms “Of course you can see him. He's your son. I'm not going to kidnap him or something just because I'm mad at you.”

 

Niall simply nods his head and takes his son in his arms, cuddling him close. He closes his eyes and breathes him in, the smell of baby powder and baby shampoo filling his nose and making him smile softly. Nothing in this world smelled better than a baby. Nothing in this world felt better than holding your baby close and feeling their soft skin against your cheek. No matter what is wrong in the world, this, this makes everything okay, if only for a moment.

 

“Hi, Bub,” Niall kisses his chubby little cheek “Daddy has to go bring your brother to school. I'll be back soon, okay? I love you.”

 

Niall kissed his cheek one more time then passed him back to Harry to be fed and turns around to leave the room. He stops in the doorway but doesn't turn around “I love you, too, Harry.”

 

He doesn't stick around to hear if Harry says it back.

 

~~~

 

When Niall gets back from dropping Rory at school, Harry is in the living room with Finn. Finn is in his infant swing, gently swinging back and forth while Harry plays with him. He's too young to grip toys himself but they know he can see things fifteen to eighteen inches in front of his face at two months old and colourful objects work the best.

 

“Hi,” Niall stands with his hands in his jeans pockets, standing behind Harry and smiling down at his son.

 

“Hello,” Harry says, not taking his eyes off their son.

 

“Can we talk?” Niall asks quietly.

 

Harry shakes his head, still not turning around to look at Niall “Not right now. Maybe when Finn goes for his nap.”

 

“Oh. Right. Yes, that would probably be best,” Niall says, his voice sounding a bit strangled He has no idea how heated this is going to get but if Harrys going to scream at him, it would be best if Finn was up in his nursery on the third floor, not likely to hear anything up there “I'm going to clean up the kitchen then. Have you eaten?”

 

“I had tea after I fed Finn.”

 

“Just tea? Let me make you something. I made eggy bread for Rory and I,” Niall says.

 

“No thank you. I'm not hungry,” Harry says curtly. Niall doesn't push it, knows it would only make things worse. His husband can't even look at him. What the fuck has he done? Has he ruined everything? Is Harry going to leave him?

 

Niall didn't say anything, just left the room and went into the kitchen, running the water into the sink and gathering up all the dishes. He rinses everything and puts it in the dishwasher, only leaving the pan out so he could scrub it in the sink. When he's done all that, he wipes the table and counters, sweeps the floor then makes himself a cup of tea. He takes it into his office and curls up on the leather couch with a blanket over himself. He's exhausted. He's had no sleep, he's been crying and he misses Harry. He's right here but he misses him anyway.

 

He doesn't know how much time passes when Harry finds him. Two hours or more probably.

 

“You wanted to talk?” Harry walked into the room, putting the baby monitor on Niall's desk and leaning against it with his arms and legs crossed.

 

“Yes,” Niall croaks out, clearing his throat he tries again “Yes. I just- Harry I'm so sorry. I owe you an apology. I hurt you. What I said was so wrong, so cruel. I feel terrible about it. My heart feels like it's being squeezed by a vice. I never, ever want to hurt you, yet I did it anyway.”

 

“Is that really what you think of me, Niall?” Harry's expression doesn't change “That I'm too much like Rory's friend and not his Father? Is that- God is that what's happening? Have I been doing that? Am I not good enough? Am I not being a good Father to him?”

 

“Oh God,” Niall stands up, flinging the blanket off himself and standing in front of Harry. He wants to touch him but doesn't dare “Harry, please, please, no. You're a wonderful Father to him. You're a better Father than I am. You're always there for him, always, and you don't screw up and make him cry like I did. He loves you so much, Harry. So much. He told me this morning to fix things with you because he doesn't like it when you're hurting.”

 

“Then why did you say it, Niall? Why?” Harry's voice and eyes are both pleading.

 

“I was angry!” Niall says, his voice sounding desperate “I was worried about our son and the both of you sat there laughing in my face. Maybe I'm overreacting with my worrying, I don't know. I just get so angry when I see older women calling him hot and all the other things they call him that they have no business saying about a sixteen year old. I don't care if he looks eighteen or nineteen, he's sixteen, and it's just wrong. Then I start worrying about him being taken advantage of. I don't care how smart and mature he is, he's a horny sixteen year old and it wouldn't take much for some gross older woman to charm him into her bed. There are some of those women who would use him just to get to you and I'm constantly worried I'm not protecting him enough, that I'm not paying attention enough, that I'm just not good enough!”

 

“Jesus Christ,” Harry murmurs under his breath as he pushes himself away from the desk and reaches out to wrap his hand around Niall's wrist, pulling him in until they're pressed chest to chest and Harry is kissing his cheek right next to his ear “Why haven't you told me any of this before? Why are you holding this inside? I'm your husband, baby. You need to confide in me and let me shoulder these worries with you.”

 

“I don't know,” Niall hugs Harry tight, his hands fisted in the back of Harry's shirt “I just- I don't want to sound like an idiot. Like I'm majorly overreacting. Like I'm being an overbearing Father. Rory doesn't even look at your Twitter. He doesn't even know, or care, what people are saying about him online and- and I'm probably overreacting about him being a horny teenager too. I mean, he is a horny teenager but maybe he is mature enough to do the right thing if he's ever put in a weird situation. God, I think way too fucking much.”

 

“You do,” Harry laughs, his breath tickling Niall's ear “You really do.”

 

“I just don't want to let him down, ya know? I missed so much of his life and I- I just want to be the Father he deserves. That's all. I want to be there for him and give him good guidance so he can go out into this world on his own someday and be ready to face anything. I can't let him down, Harry. I love him so much. I can't let him down. I can't-” A sob bubbles up in Niall's throat, sounding loud and broken in the quiet room.

 

“Shit,” Harry curses and clings on to Niall tighter “No, baby, no. You will never let him down, do you hear me? Never. Not where it counts. Maybe you'll miss some of his matches because of work or you're sick or one of our kids is sick, you may let him down that way but that can't be helped. That's life. Where it counts? You won't let him down. You've never let me down. Where would I be now if not for you?”

 

“You would have been fine, H. You're stronger than you think.” Niall sniffles into Harry's shirt.

 

“No I'm not. I'm really not,” Harry says sadly “Or, I should say, I wasn't. I am now, thanks to you. I believe I can do anything as long as I have you. I'm only like that because of you.”

 

“What are you talking about?” Niall pulls back, looking at Harry with confusion in his eyes “Are you talking about how depressed you were after Jack died?”

 

Harry blew out a long breath and guided Niall over to sit on the couch with him “I've never told you this before. I was too ashamed.”

 

“Told me what?” Niall stares at him with wide, watery eyes.

 

“In the two months after Jack died, before I wandered on to that chat room and met you, I thought so many times about just...ending it all,” Harry pauses when Niall gasps and grips his hand so hard his nails dig into Harry's skin “I almost did it a couple times. My Mum's face always stopped me. I kept thinking of the look on her face when she was told I was dead. It would have destroyed her. Gemma too. I don't know how long that would have worked though. I always wonder if eventually I would have blocked her face out and finally gone through with it. I met you, though, and those thoughts went away. You were so strong for me and you got me through. So, no, you won't let Rory down. Never.”

 

“Harry...” Niall chokes out before he starts crying and lunges at Harry, hugging him tight. Harry's crying too, the two of them holding on to each other for dear life and sobbing into each others necks.

 

It takes a while, but when they finally stop crying, they pull out of their hug and wipe the tears from each others faces “I'm so fucking grateful you didn't do it. The thought of never meeting you, not having what we have, it makes me sick.”

 

“Me too, baby,” Harry gives him a watery smile “Me too.”

 

“Do you forgive me for being an arse and hurting you?” Niall asks quietly.

 

“Yeah. I understand why you did. I just- I do forgive you but I do feel like something needs to be said,” Harry stares at Niall, his jaw clenching “You lost your temper. You didn't think before you spoke. That can't happen again, Niall. That's- that boy is _my_ _son_ , Niall. I don't care who's fucking blood is running through his veins. He's my son and I won't sit back and be quiet when you don't think and he ends up getting hurt. I won't do it.”

 

Niall nods his head vehemently “You're right. You're absolutely right. If anything like this ever happens again I want you to put me in my place. Obviously I'm going to try my best to not let it happen again though.”

 

“We shouldn't have laughed at you. We should have seen you were trying to be serious. I do apologize for laughing. I was wrong. You just had to ask us to stop laughing, baby. That's it. You just had to make us see you were being serious.” Harry says, his thumb rubbing over the inside of Niall's wrist.

 

“I know. I definitely know that. I had a good talk with Rory this morning. I apologized to him for my behaviour and let him know it wasn't his fault. He thanked me for the apology but told me he had to accept some of the blame. He said Kaetlyn always told him his mouth would get him in trouble one day and he knows it's not always appropriate to be cheeky like he is. He wanted to let me know he was going to try harder to make sure he's taking things seriously when the situation warrants it.” Niall says “I was so proud. I was going to say all that to him but I didn't have to. He figured it all out on his own.”

 

“I'm not surprised,” Harry's grin is lopsided “He's smart and intuitive. I'm so proud of him too.”

 

“Hmm,” Niall hums, leaning in for a kiss “Are we okay?”

 

“We're okay, love,” Harry nodded, nipping at Niall's bottom lip and pressing their foreheads together.

 

“Thank you,” Niall whispers “I hate fighting with you. I never slept for one second last night. It's bad enough to be in bed without you when you're on tour. It's torture when we're in the same house, but in different beds.”

 

“I didn't sleep either. I lay awake missing you. I heard you come up to take care of Finn and I just wanted to call for you and tell you to come back. I was just so angry though. It hurt seeing Rory so distraught.”

 

“You're so incredible,” Niall groans “And so fucking hot. Jesus Christ you're like a Lion protecting its young when you're protecting Rory. You're actually terrifying and like you said, he doesn't even have your DNA. Nobody in this world would accept a teenage son the way you did with Rory. You're an incredible human being. I fucking love you.”

 

“Did you just call me terrifying?” Harry laughed incredulously.

 

“Shut up,” Niall reached in to pinch the skin right above his hip “You're normally about as terrifying as a kitten but last night, when you told me to get out of our bedroom, you were terrifying. Obviously when it comes to our kids you can be quite scary. I was stunned.”

 

“I'm not sorry for it either. I'm always going to stand up for our kids. Even if it's you I feel did them wrong some how.” Harry said firmly.

 

“I wouldn't have it any other way,” Niall smiled, leaning in to kiss Harry on the corner of his mouth.

 

They cuddle on the couch for a few minutes, Harry pushed back deep into the cushions with Niall curled into his side, half on top of him. When Niall speaks again after ten minutes his voice is a bit timid “How long do you think we have before Finn wakes up from his nap?”

 

“Hard to say,” Harry frowns “Maybe an hour? He's still so young. Still sleeps a lot.”

 

Niall hums and sits up, pushing himself away from Harry long enough to manouver his body so he could straddle Harry's lap. As soon as he was comfortable, he slid a hand behind Harry's neck, his thumb sliding over Harry's bottom lip and over to lightly stroke Harry's jaw. He moved in and slotted their lips together, kissing Harry softly, his teeth tantalizingly nipping at Harry's bottom lip, his tongue sliding out just enough to tease Harry but not enough to slip inside his mouth.

 

“I love you,” Niall murmured in between soft kisses to Harry's lips “I need to be close to you right now. I was so scared. I thought- I thought I'd fucked up too bad this time. Bad enough to make you leave.”

 

Harry sucked in a breath, his eyes bright and intense as he looked into Niall's “I'd never leave you. Nothing you could ever do would make me leave you. Sometimes I might need time to think and cool off but we'll always work it out. Always.”

 

Niall presses his forehead against Harry's and brushes their noses together in an Eskimo kiss “Thank God for you.”

 

Harry grinned and leaned in to kiss his husband. It started out slow, a few pecks to the corner of Niall's mouth and on his lips, every press of their lips lasting longer and longer until Harry playfully bit down on Niall's bottom lip, making him open up so Harry could slide his tongue inside.

 

It got more intense after that. It wasn't frantic, they weren't ripping each others clothes off and grinding hard on each other like they were sixteen years old. It was simple touches and soft sighs, whispered words of love and praise.

 

“What do you want, baby?” Harry asks, pulling back from their kiss. He was laying fully on top of Niall now, after picking Niall up off his lap and laying him down on his back on the couch “Anything you want.”

 

Niall stared up at Harry looking soft and vulnerable. It wasn't a side of himself Niall showed very often or very easily. He didn't like to feel vulnerable and Harry knew he was the only one who got to see Niall one hundred percent vulnerable. Niall had once told him it was because he trusted Harry implicitly and knew he was safe with him, knew his heart wouldn't ever be broken or taken advantage of.

 

“I need to feel you,” Niall whispered, his hands travelling up the back of Harry's t-shirt and over the muscles in Harry's back “I just need to feel like everything is okay.”

 

Harry nodded and leaned down, pressing kisses to Niall's forehead, his cheek and his lips again. He told Niall he'd be right back and jumped up long enough to grab lube and a condom from Niall's desk. Heat pooled in his belly when he thought about why they even kept supplies in Niall's office, his mind drifting briefly to the time Niall stripped him naked and spread him out on his belly over his desk while he ate him out until he came.

 

Shaking his head, Harry tried to forget about that for now, needing to concentrate on his husband in the here and now and making him feel safe and not so vulnerable anymore.

 

“Lift up for a minute, baby. Lets get this blanket under us so our arses don't stick to the leather of this couch,” Harry said, smiling wide when he got a gleeful laugh out of Niall.

 

“Forget the condom,” Niall flicked his eyes to the package in Harry's hand “Don't care about making a mess right now. Just need you to fuck me.”

 

“Okay,” Harry put the condom down on the floor and straddled Niall's hips, kissing him slow and languid while he ran his hands up and down Niall's arms, shoulders, under his shirt. He got Niall to lift his arms so he could remove the shirt he was wearing, then he quickly pulled his own shirt over his head so he could duck down and start kissing over every inch of Niall's body, licking and nipping at the skin until he had Niall panting underneath him, and rock hard in his jeans against Harry's hip.

 

“Love you,” Harry murmured as he popped the button on Niall's jeans and moved back to help him wriggle out of them. He had to stand up briefly to remove his own jeans but was back on Niall in no time, Niall's hands cupping the back of Harry's neck while they kissed, then moving down over his back until he was cupping Harry's arse. “God I love you Niall. More than anything.”

 

“Harry...please.” Niall arched his back up off the couch when their cocks pressed together through their boxers “Please...more. Want more.”

 

Harry bent down over Niall, sucking a bruise into his right hip as he started pulling Niall's boxers down, exposing his hard, leaking cock. As soon as he got them both completely naked, he nudged Niall's legs open with his knee while he gripped the base of Niall's cock in his hand and brought it to his lips, sucking him down and moaning at the familiar taste and smell of his husband.

 

Niall whimpered and bit down on his lip, curling his fingers into Harry's hair and pulling slightly like he knew Harry liked. He watched, taking shuddering breaths as he watched his husbands sinful lips stretch around his cock.

 

“Oh fuck,” Niall said in a low voice “God yeah, just like that.”

 

Harry picked up his speed at the praise, hollowing his cheeks and bobbing his head until he can't breathe anymore and pulls off, gasping in air.

 

“Oh my God,” Niall throws an arm over his eyes “You look so fucking obscene like that. When you can't breathe because my cocks been down your throat.”

 

Harry laughs, his breaths still coming fast as he kisses his way back up Niall's stomach and chest until he can kiss his lips again, delving his tongue in and letting Niall taste himself, letting him taste the way his come tastes on Harry's tongue.

 

“You want me to fuck you now?” Harry mumbles into Niall's mouth as he slows down the kiss “I'll take care of you.”

 

“Please,” Niall nods, opening his legs even wider so Harry can finger him open.

 

Harry kisses him again while pouring lube out onto his fingers. He gets right to work, slowly fingering Niall open, taking extra care since Harry didn't fuck Niall as much as Niall fucked him.

 

When he made it up to three fingers, they were both panting and Niall was letting out the most amazing noises, biting down on his lip so hard it was swollen and puffy. Harry couldn't stop leaning up to kiss it, suck on it and bite down on it with his own teeth, making Niall dig his fingers into Harry's back. Harry was so turned on by it all he was grinding against Niall's leg, trying anything to gain some friction for his aching cock.

 

“Harry,” Niall gasps, his hands wandering down Harry's back to grip his pale arse “Please, darlin', please fuck me. I promise I'm ready. Please.”

 

“Yeah,” Harry pants “Yeah, baby. I've got you,” Harry sits up on his knees between Niall's legs and lifts them high around his waist, Niall wasting no time crossing his ankles and squeezing Harry tight.

 

When Harry finally enters Niall completely, Niall moans and arches his back up off the couch, throwing his head back against the arm of the couch exposing the pale skin of his slender neck. Just the sight of that had Harry almost coming.

 

“You're so gorgeous like this,” Harry murmurs against Niall's neck. He noses along the curve of his neck, his lips barely brushing against Niall's skin before he latches on and starts sucking at the spot he knows drives Niall wild.

 

“Fucking Christ, Harry. Move. Please move,” Niall gasps, his legs tightening around Harry after every stroke of Harry's tongue over the skin of his neck.

 

Harry leans over Niall, bracing himself with both hands against the arm of the couch on either side of Niall's head and starts to move his hips. He looks down into his husbands gorgeous blue eyes, never breaking eye contact as he slides his dick out of Niall only to slowly push back in.

 

“Fuck that's so good,” Niall bites his lip, little soft whimpers sounding in his throat. His hands come from around Harry's neck and curl around both of Harry's forearms, making Harry dig his nails into the leather of the couch. With Niall's hands curled around his forearms like that, he can't take his eyes off Niall's wedding band and it's ridiculous really, because he's seen Niall's wedding band a million times since they got married, he put the damn thing on Niall's finger himself, yet it still renders him speechless, makes his heart swell until he thinks it might just stop beating. It never, ever gets old, seeing that symbol of their love on Niall's finger. Knowing that Niall's never taken it off even once since their wedding day. Knowing when people see it, they know Niall is taken, that he's Harry's.

 

The emotion overwhelms him and all he can do is duck his head and kiss the ring sitting on Niall's finger. All he can do his keep thrusting slow and steady inside his husband because if he stops to think about it anymore, he'll start crying like a baby and that's really not a turn on during sex.

 

Harry doesn't know how much time passes before he feels the familiar burn in his stomach that tells him he's going to come soon. It could have been five minutes or it could have been half an hour, he was too caught up in Niall to notice. Their fucking was slow and sensual. They were panting, whimpering and holding on to each other tight. It was incredibly intimate, they were more focused on feeling close to each other than getting off. They knew they'd get off eventually and their orgasms would probably be incredible like they always were but they weren't in a rush to get there. It wasn't the frantic, animalistic sex they sometimes have when they're so horny and hot for each other they barely make it to their bedroom.

 

“Baby,” Harry whispers against Niall's lips after a particularly long, slow kiss “Are you close? Want you to come first.”

 

“Yes,” Niall said, his breath hitching every time Harry thrust and hit his spot “I'm so close, darlin'”

 

Harry let out a soft grunt and held himself up over Niall with one hand, his other hand wrapping around Niall's cock and tugging fast until Niall threw his head back and moaned 'oh fuck' as he spilled all over Harry's hand.

 

It was exactly what Harry was waiting for, holding off just long enough for Niall to come then he let himself go, his whole body stilling as he emptied inside of Niall. He collapsed on top of Niall as soon as he was done but he knew Niall didn't mind. He knew Niall loved feeling his weight on top of him. This time was no different. He felt Niall's arms wrap around him immediately and felt Niall's lips kiss the damp skin on his forehead. It was so amazing and they were so close and sated which is exactly why the baby monitor comes to life with Finn's cries filling the room.

 

Niall burst out laughing immediately, the sound filling the room and making Harry smile against Niall's shoulder. Niall had the best laugh in the world. He was convinced of it.

 

“At least he let us come first,” Harry said wryly once Niall's laughing settled down to a quiet giggle. Of course that only set him off again and Harry had to pull out of Niall and roll off him onto the floor to find their clothes because by the looks of it, Niall wouldn't be coherent enough to move any time soon. “I'm going to tend to our son, you go clean the come out of your arse.”

 

“Okay,” Niall giggled “I'll meet you in our bedroom in a minute.”

 

Harry nodded, pulled his boxers up his legs, and leaned down to kiss Niall quickly before turning and leaving the room to run upstairs to their crying son.

 

He spent the next few minutes in the nursery, changing Finn's nappy and singing him a song. He dressed him back in his onesie then kissed his little cheek a few times, smiling at the gurgling noises he made as he walked them across the hall to the master bedroom.

 

“Where's Daddy, hmm? I think Daddy is taking a shower,” Harry said in a soft voice. He cuddled Finn against his chest, closing his eyes and sighing as he took in his son's baby smell and felt the soft skin of his cheek against his neck. Babies had the softest skin and the best smell (when they weren't shitting everywhere) and it made Harry want to wrap Finn up and never let him go. It also made him want a baby every year for the next fifty years but somehow he thinks Niall wouldn't go for that.

 

The shower shuts off a minute later and Harry can hear Niall softly singing to himself while he dries himself off. He settles himself on the bed with Finn, propped up with his back against the headboard and Finn still cuddled against his chest, when Niall comes out of the en suite. He's dry but completely naked and Harry watches approvingly as his husband walks across the room to get a clean pair of boxers from the drawer.

 

“Are you staring at my arse?” Niall asks, his tone amused.

 

“Obviously,” Harry rolls his eyes even though Niall has his back to him “Your arse is perfect. Just the right amount of softness and firmness all rolled in to one.”

 

“I don't even know what that means,” Niall turns around laughing, the view from the front even better and making Harry grin even wider “Oh my God! Stop ogling me you fool!”

 

“Can't. You're too sexy. Make me hot all the time you do.” Harry says with a twinkle in his eye.

 

“Oh God,” Niall laughs again, shaking his head at Harry. Harry can see the slight blush on his face, though, and it makes him feel a bit giddy that he has the power to do that to his husband. Niall's always been a confidant man but Harry is well aware of his insecurities and loves when he can make Niall forget about them with just a few silly words and a smile.

 

“Daddy's here Finn,” Harry coos, turning his attention back to his son “You love Daddy too, don't you? Just as much as Papa does, I bet.”

 

“Hi Bub,” Niall walks over to the bed, now in a pair of joggers and one of Harry's jumpers that was too big for him. “Did you have a good nap?”

 

“I do believe he did,” Harry said as he passed the baby to Niall then proceeded to wrap his gangly body around the both of them like a koala “I thanked him for letting us finish our shag before he woke up.”

 

“Oh my God, you didn't!” Niall bursts out laughing, the sound making Finn's eyes widen and then...

 

“Holy fuck did he just laugh? I think he just laughed, Niall. He fucking laughed!” Harry flung his body off of Niall, groping around on his nightstand until he found his phone and flicked the video on. “Make him laugh again!”

 

Niall sits stunned for a moment, not quite believing what he just heard. He knew from all the baby books that their son could start laughing once he hit two months old but it wasn't something he had actively been thinking about now that Finn was two months old.

 

He snapped out of it quickly, holding Finn out in front of him and leaning in to brush their noses together. He makes a few silly faces and then it happens again. A genuine smile that made his sons whole face light up and a tiny little laugh that went straight to his heart.

 

“Oh my God!” Harry cries, slapping a hand over his own mouth to keep from sobbing “His first laugh. Our baby boy laughed.”

 

“He did,” Niall's smile was wide “He really did. It was beautiful. Yes it was, Bub. It was so cute. You're Daddy's little cutie aren't you? Yes you are.”

 

Finn laughed again, his eyes bright and drool running down his chin as he waves his little arms around. Niall and Harry couldn't stop giggling at him and cooing at him, making funny faces to try and get him to do it again. Eventually they think he gets annoyed with them because he scrunches up his face and starts whimpering, making snuffling noises into Niall's jumper as soon as Niall pulls him close.

 

“I'll go make him a bottle. It's about that time,” Harry says, snapping a few pictures of Niall and Finn as he makes his way out of the room “These are definitely going on Twitter!”

 

Niall chuckles and shakes his head fondly “Your Papa is very silly, Finnegan. He's so silly. We love him though don't we? He's going to be the best Papa any boy could ask for. I can promise you that. You, me and Rory, we're the luckiest people in the world because we have your Papa in our lives to take care of us.”

 

Finn continued to make little snuffling noises while Niall talked to him. It seemed to calm him for the moment but Niall knew it was only a matter of time before he needed his bottle and started screaming.

 

“I love you,” Niall whispered, kissing the top of his sons head “I promise I'll do my best everyday to show you that. I'll do my best to be the father you deserve.”

 

That's a promise Niall intended to keep.

 

 

~~~

 

 

Over the next few months, their lives were incredibly busy. Niall went back to work when Finn was four months old, meaning Harry was the one home taking care of him all day. They did everything from watching kids shows on the telly (Finn had no idea what was going on but the music and bright colours were stimulating for a baby) taking long walks through the park when the weather started to warm up, taking naps together, and playing together.

 

When Finn was down for a nap, Harry would clean up and keep the house in order, do laundry, pay bills- everything domestic that he always dreamed about doing. Then when Niall came home in the evening they would eat dinner and spend time together as a family, catching up with Rory on whats going on in school, talking about Niall's day at work. Then Niall would take care of Finn and give Harry a bit of a break even though he insisted he didn't need it.

 

It was picture perfect. Almost too perfect. Which meant something had to give. Niall never dreamed it would be him and Harry fighting over work though.

 

It was in June, when Finn was five months old, that Niall started to notice Harry acting different. He seemed sad, almost depressed sometimes, and he was short with Niall way more often than he's ever been. Niall assumed he was just tired from taking care of a baby all day so he tried to do more, help more, give Harry time alone to relax or go out with his friends. That didn't seem to work though. It only seemed to make it worse.

 

It was an innocent comment by Niall that blew everything up oddly enough. They were loading the dishwasher after dinner one night when Niall mentioned to Harry he'd have to stay at work late the next night.

 

“Of course,” Harry said tersely, not lifting his eyes from the pot he was scrubbing in the sink.

 

“So I won't be home for dinner,” Niall says carefully, his brow furrowing as he looks at Harry hunched over the sink, his shoulders looking tense.

 

“Yeah I think I got that Niall, thanks,” Harry said sarcastically. His tone was biting, a tone Niall couldn't ever remember Harry using before.

 

“Okay,” Niall tentatively walked over to stand beside Harry at the sink “I was just trying to be considerate and give you a heads up. I'm pretty sure that tone of yours was unnecessary.”

 

“I'm pretty sure I don't care,” Harry shoots back, making Niall stand up straight and quirk an eyebrow.

 

“Excuse me? What the fuck is your problem, Harry? I haven't done anything to you. Why are you treating me like crap right now?”

 

Harry lifts the pot out of the sink and the moment Niall realizes he's about to slam it down in frustration is the moment he grabs Harry by the wrist to stop him. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” He seethes “Our five month old child is right over there in his swing so I know you don't mean to slam a pot down and scare him. Right?”

 

Harry stares wide eyed and horrified at Niall, his mouth gaping open like he wants to speak but nothing is coming out. Niall has no idea what the fuck is going on. He has no idea why his husband has been acting off lately or why he's losing his cool right now but he's damn well going to get to the bottom of it.

 

Letting go of Harry's wrist, he goes over to the panel on the wall and uses the intercom to talk to Rory who was up in his bedroom. They never used to use the intercom. It was already installed when they bought the house but they thought it was pretentious and made fun of it mostly. Yeah it was a big house but if you went to the bottom of the stairs and called up to somebody, they'd hear you if you were loud enough. They use it now, though, so they aren't always calling out to each other and possibly disturbing Finn from a nap or just outright scaring him with their loud voices.

 

“Rory, can you come down and get your brother and take him up with you for a bit? I need to chat with Harry about a few things.” Niall says calmly.

 

“Is this really so you can have a shag? Because I'm doing my homework and-”

 

“Rory.” Niall cuts him off, his voice still calm but firm “Now.”

 

Rory doesn't respond but Niall can hear movement upstairs and a minute later, Rory appears in the kitchen looking wearily between Niall and Harry.

 

“Thanks, love. I know you're doing homework but he's fed and changed, just happily swinging away right now. He won't bother you. Bring the swing up and I'll bring Finn up. If he gets fussy at all, we'll be downstairs in the game room. Just call us on the intercom if you need anything.” Niall says as he picks Finn up from the swing.

 

Rory nods his head and grabs the swing to bring upstairs. It's a bit awkward because the swing he has now is a little bigger than the one he had as an infant but it's not heavy and Rory will have no trouble carrying it. Niall follows him upstairs and spends five minutes getting them settled then kisses them both on the head before heading downstairs to talk to Harry.

 

“Why are we going downstairs to the game room?” Is the first thing Harry asks when Niall walks back into the kitchen.

 

“Because you almost slammed a pot into the sink. You're clearly angry or frustrated or both and I have a feeling there'll probably be some yelling happening. I'd rather not have our kids hear that.”Niall says evenly, then turns around and heads for the stairs that lead downstairs. He doesn't wait to see if Harry is following him. He knows he will because he loves their sons and the last thing he would want is to have them hear him and Niall fighting.

 

“Alright,” Niall closes the door to the game room as soon as Harry walks in “What's wrong with you?”

 

Harry crossed his arms defensively and rolled his eyes “Nothing is wrong with me Niall. Can't I just be having a bad day? Can't I just be tired?”

 

“Yeah you can but that's not what this is. This has been going on for awhile. You're moody, you snap at me, you're tense all the time. We haven't had sex in almost a month. The only time we've ever gone that long is when you've been on tour. Something is going on with you.” Niall says.

 

“Sex? Is that what you want? Fine. We can do it right now.” Harry unfolds his arms and starts unbuttoning his shirt.

 

“What the fuck?” Niall stares at him incredulously, walking over and slapping his hands down “What is wrong with you? What the fuck is wrong with you? Of course this isn't about sex! I was merely making an observation and the fact you haven't wanted to have sex is an indication that you're not okay. That something is wrong. Why are you treating me like crap all the time?”

 

“Because you never shut up about work!” Harry finally explodes “It's always work work work. I don't want to hear it anymore!”

 

“What?” Niall held his hands out in front of him, confusion written all over his face “That's not true. You know it's not. I come home and I talk about work if you or Rory ask how my day was. That's it. I spend the rest of my time with you, Finn and Rory. I help out with the baby so you can relax after all day. We spend our weekends together as a family not talking about work.”

 

“Well it certainly feels like it's all you talk about.” Harry huffs, crossing his arms over his chest again.

 

“I don't understand. I didn't think I was doing that,” Niall slowly sits down on the couch running a hand over his face, shock evident on his face “Am I wrong? Have I been so caught up in work I've neglected you? I swore that would never happen. We talked about it together. Have I done it anyway?”

 

“No,” Harry mumbles “You haven't neglected me or the kids.”

 

“Then what? I don't understand Harry!” Niall stands up again, throwing his arms out to the side exasperatedly “I just don't understand.”

 

“Of course you don't. You get to go off every morning to work, to a job you enjoy. You didn't have to give anything up did you? Not a damn thing!” Harry is the one seething now, while Niall looks on helplessly.

 

“Is that what this is about?” Niall's voice rises as he gets angry “You're jealous because I have a job?”

 

“I'm not jealous, Niall!” Harry waves his hands around in the air “I'm saying you don't understand how I'm feeling because you have your job. You've always had it. You never had to give it up.”

 

“You don't have to give yours up either!” Niall shouts exasperatedly.

 

“Don't I?” Harry snorts derisively “I have hundreds of songs I've written, I haven't stopped writing since my last album. I still love it but what for? Nobody will ever hear them. I've had other offers as well. Just a few weeks ago I was picking Rory up from Zuma's and Gwen mentioned she's doing the next season of 'The Voice' this coming fall. She said I should be an advisor on her team like we did years ago. We had fun and one of her contestants won that season. I just laughed it off but I would love to do that again. I'd love to help people realize their dream. It's in LA though so...”

 

“Harry...” Niall sighed and took a few deep breaths to try and calm himself “I've always been supportive of your career. I'd never stop you from doing this if it's what you want. Why are you treating me like shit over this? I haven't done anything wrong.”

 

“I don't know, Niall! I don't know.” Harry's eyes fill with tears “I wasn't doing it consciously. I would never, ever hurt you on purpose. I just- I feel like I have to choose between my family and my career and you don't have to do that and I-”

 

“And you resent me for it? Is that it?” Niall's jaw clenches, his heart picking up speed as it pounds in his chest, the sound filling his ears “You fucking resent me for being good at my job and loving it.”

 

“No! Niall, I don't-”

 

“Shut up Harry. We've been here before haven't we? In the beginning of our relationship. I stood my ground and told you I like working, I love my job and I am more than capable of supporting myself. You threw a fit at first, wanting me to go on the road with you but we talked it out and you said you understood where I was coming from. You said you respected me for it. It hasn't been a problem since. What changed? Or were you pretending all along? Just waiting until we were married and thinking I'd be more willing to be a kept man then? Follow you around on tour and take care of the kids while you're off schmoozing at parties and performing shows.?” Niall spits out, the anger bubbling up inside him and threatening to spill out all over the place.

 

“That's not fair, Niall! I never fucking said any of that!” Harry cries out, his hands pulling at his hair.

 

“It's fine,” Niall shakes his head, clenching his fists by his side “Obviously you're not going to get over it this time. You've been in a strop for the past three weeks. It's going to have to be me to fix things right? I'll hand in my resignation tomorrow. Is that what you want? Will that make you happy? You can record a new album. I'll stay home with Finn then when the time comes we'll pack up and go off on tour together. No matter that I've only just gotten Rory in my life and we'll have to leave him behind because he'll be playing Football here in England.”

 

“Stop it!!!” Harry screams, louder than he's ever screamed before “Fuck you!! That's not fair at all! I don't want any of that! You're being a fucking prick right now.”

 

“Well you won't have to deal with me anymore. I'm going upstairs and when I calm down enough to put a fucking smile on my face, I'm going to kiss my sons and tell Rory I'm going to Willie's for a few days to help him with something.”

 

“He's not stupid! He'll see right through that.” Harry scoffs.

 

“Probably but at least he'll see me leaving calmly and he'll know where I am if he needs me.” Niall says with a shrug “Don't follow me. I don't care where you go but don't come up to the bedrooms until I'm gone.”

 

Then he turns around and leaves the room, heading up to the master bedroom to pack a bag and calm himself down for his sons sake. Harry's right of course, he can tell Rory knows something is up but Niall's not leaving the house and slamming the door behind him like he did the last time so he seems okay with it.

 

An hour later he's gone. He didn't see Harry even once.

 

 

~~~

 

 

Niall spent the evening at Willie's drinking beer and ranting about everything that happened at home. Willie didn't say anything, just let him get it all out so he could hopefully calm down again. By the time he heads to the guest bedroom to go to sleep he's physically and mentally exhausted and simply leaves his clothes in a pile on the floor to climb into bed.

 

Only it doesn't seem to matter how exhausted he is, he can't get to sleep anyway. He knows it's partly because he has so much running through his head right now and he can't shut his brain off. It's also partly (mostly) because Harry isn't beside him. They usually sleep so tangled together it's hard to tell where one body begins and one ends and now all he's got beside him is a large empty space.

 

He sighs loudly and turns over onto his front, punching the pillows a few times to fluff them up or just out of frustration, Niall has no idea and is too tired to figure it out. He burrows under the duvet and curls up, tries to relax his body but half an hour later he's still wide awake and on the verge of pulling his hair out.

 

He's angry is the thing. He's still angry but now doubt has also crept in, settling in the pit of his stomach and threatening to make him sick. He can't stop going over his life with Harry, going back over conversations over the years and trying to figure out if he said something, done something to make Harry feel the way he's feeling right now. When Harry said he wanted to take a year or more off to adopt a baby, was it what he really wanted or did Niall somehow make him think it was what he wanted? Did Harry only do it because he loves Niall so much and will do anything to make him happy?

 

It pains him to think all this. He can feel the tension in his neck, back and shoulders. He can feel how his jaw hurts from clenching his teeth over and over again. If this is somehow his fault, if Harry is miserable and gave up his career because he felt he had too...Niall doesn't know if he could handle that. The thought of Harry being anything but happy because of him makes him sick. Makes the bile roll around in his stomach and threaten to come up his throat until he's bent over a toilet repeatedly vomiting.

 

His eyes start to burn as the tears build up in his eyes. He flips back over onto his back and presses the heels of both palms into his eyes, trying to stop the tears before they start falling. If he starts crying, he's not sure he'll be able to stop.

 

His phone pings on the bedside table, making him remove his hands from his eyes to grab it. It's after midnight. Not many people would text him this late and he immediately worries something has happened to Finn or Rory. He wipes at his eyes frantically and opens up his phone. It is a text from Harry.

 

**I know you're not happy with me right now and I understand you need some time to cool off. I refuse to go to bed without telling you I love you so...I love you, Niall. More than anything. I hope you sleep well. Love you xxx**

Niall let out a whimpering noise and the tears he tried so hard to stop from falling, started to fall anyway. His Harry. His gorgeous, sweet, generous husband didn't want to go to bed without making sure he told Niall he loved him. It was typical Harry and Niall loved him so, so much.

 

Niall picked up his phone from where he laid it on the bed and sent back his own text.

 

**I love you, too, darlin'. More than anything.**

 

Harry doesn't say anything else after that. Niall knows it's because he's trying to give him his space to cool off. He can see Harry's read it though and that's good enough for now.

 

~~~

 

Niall must have dozed off eventually because he woke up with a start at half six when his alarm went off. He couldn't have been asleep for long though. He certainly didn't feel rested at all. His eyes were burning, his head was pounding and his body ached from being wound up with tension since last night.

 

With a sigh and a groan he swung his legs over the side of the bed, pushed himself up, and stumbled his way across the hall to take a long, hot shower. It helped a little. His body ached a little less, he felt a bit more alert, his heart still ached though and all he wanted was his husband.

 

Swiping a hand over his face, he sighs again and gets dressed for work, making coffee in the kitchen and filling up Willie's largest travel mug to take with him. When he gets in the car he sits there on the street for a bit and texts Rory to ask if he wants a ride to school or if he's taking the tube. Rory says he's taking the tube so Niall wishes him a good day at school then pulls out into traffic for the drive to work.

 

Work is rough. He drinks so much coffee that he ends up going to the toilet more often than normal, he's exhausted, his eyes hurt (even with his glasses on) and he's not really getting anything done. He thinks about just packing up and going back to Willie's to try and sleep but he doesn't. He's a thirty-three year old adult with a job, he can't just skip work whenever he feels like it because he had a rough night.

 

So he stayed and started to get a few things done until eventually it was one o'clock and his assistant was standing in his doorway “Reception just called me. Your husband is on his way up.”

 

Niall's eyes snapped up from his paper, focusing in on his assistant “Harry? He didn't tell me he was coming.”

 

Kelly shrugged her shoulders and took her I-pad out from under her arm “Maybe he wanted to surprise you? You of all people know what a sap your husband is.”

 

“Yeah,” Niall says distractedly, his eyes darting around the room until they landed on the papers on his desk again “Maybe.”

 

Kelly left him then, tapping away on her I-pad as she walked back to her desk. Only a few moments later there was a tentative knock on his door and he looked up to see Harry staring back at him, his teeth nervously sunk into his bottom lip.

 

He was gorgeous. Of course he was. Like Niall, he probably didn't get much sleep. There were bags under his eyes and lines on his forehead, he looked a bit more pale than usual, yet he was still gorgeous standing there with his hair pulled back into a loose bun, wearing tight blue skinny jeans that hug his thighs just right. His t-shirt was one of his oldest ones, a Rolling Stones band t-shirt that had seen better days and was a bit tight across his chest and shoulders, completely accentuating his broad upper body and God, Niall just wanted desperately to be in his arms.

 

“Hey,” Harry says softly, lingering just inside the doorway, not quite sure if he was allowed in. It was hard for Niall to see. Harry is his husband and is always welcome here and yet one fight (albeit a nasty fight) left Harry looking vulnerable and unsure. Niall never wanted to see Harry looking like that.

 

“Hey,” Niall clears his throat and swallows thickly “Where's Finn?”

 

“He's at home with Louis. They were playing when I left.” Harry says, looking down at his feet.

 

“Oh. Okay,” Niall fidgets around a bit, shuffling papers around and knocking a pen onto the floor “Um. Come in. Close the door.”

 

Harry looked immediately relieved as he stepped fully into the office, clearly he wasn't completely sure Niall wouldn't ask him to leave. He shut the door behind him and Niall saw the bag in his hand for the first time.

 

“I-I brought you some lunch,” Harry held up the bag to show Niall then laid it on the desk in front of him “I know you and I know you've probably had nothing to eat yet today, just been drinking coffee.”

 

The corner of Niall's mouth twitched up in a smile because yeah, Harry does know him and he's absolutely right. “You're not wrong.”

 

Harry hums and sits down in one of the chairs in front of Niall's desk. His eyes move over Niall's face and Niall knows he's looking to see if he's alright, if he looks too tired or not “It's your favourite sandwich from that deli four blocks over from our house. Extra pickles.”

 

“Thank you. I'll eat every bite. I'm pretty starving.” Niall says, peeking inside the bag, the smell of the sandwich wafting out and making his stomach rumble.

 

They're quiet after that. Neither one is sure where to look, Harry is shuffling his feet around, Niall feels like his tie is too tight and it's just all incredibly awkward. Finally Harry clears his throat to speak.

 

“I'm sorry, Niall. I never meant to hurt you last night. Actually, I've been a real fucking prick for the past three weeks. Haven't treated you the way you deserve to be treated. I'm sorry for that.” Harry looks Niall sincerely in the eye when he says it and Niall knows he's telling the truth, knows he's sorry, he just doesn't know if that changes anything right now.

 

“I don't really know what to say, Harry.” Niall admits.

 

“You could say you believe me.”

 

“I do,” Niall nodded “I know you'd never intentionally hurt me. I also know the way you've been acting over the past three weeks isn't you. None of that is the issue though. I forgive you for that. Easily. Everyone snaps at their loved ones sometimes.”

 

“Okay,” Harry said, dragging out the word “What is the issue then?”

 

Niall sat back in his chair, laughing humorlessly “Harry, we've been married for two years. Together for five. How many of those years have you resented me? Since the beginning? Or just since we got married?”

 

Harry stared at Niall with wide eyes, his breath catching in his throat when he tries to speak, making him choke a bit “Niall. God, no. I don't resent you. Not in the least. I don't. I just don't.”

 

“How am I supposed to believe that after last night? Maybe you just didn't realize you resent me and it all came out last night.” Niall said.

 

“You're supposed to believe me because I've never lied to you. We don't lie to each other. Do you really fucking believe I am now?” A stony look comes over Harry's face and Niall immediately knows this isn't going to end well if he doesn't stop it right now.

 

“I'm not talking about this right now, Harry. This is my work. My colleagues are in the offices all around us. It's not the time or place for this.” Niall says quickly and quietly.

 

Harry clenches his jaw for a moment and Niall knows he wants to object. He doesn't though. He releases his jaw and takes in a deep breath instead “Okay. Are you coming home tonight?”

 

Niall sighed “I don't know.”

 

“You can't be serious?” Harry stares incredulously at him “Niall-”

 

“I don't know if it's a good idea, Harry. I don't want our kids to get caught up in all this. We have a lot to talk about and until we do, things will probably be tense and awkward.”

 

“We can't talk if you don't come home. We can't work it out if we don't talk so...” Harry trails off and stares at Niall with pleading eyes “Please come home. Rory is almost seventeen. He knows something is up and Finn will notice his Daddy is missing. We don't have to talk yet if you're not ready but we can be adults can't we? Keep the tension to a minimum for our kids sake?”

 

Niall thinks about it for awhile, conscious of Harry's eyes on him the whole time. He knew Harry was right. He needed to be home with his family, be there for his kids. Things didn't have to be awkward unless they let it be awkward.

 

“Okay. Yeah. I'll be home after work.” Niall nodded firmly.

 

“Thank you,” Harry smiled at him “I'll let you get back to work then.”

 

“Thanks for the sandwich.” Niall says again as he watches Harry walk toward the door “H?”

 

“Yeah?” Harry turned back around to face him, his eyes suspiciously more wet than they were a minute ago. Was he trying not to cry?

 

“I love you,” Niall says softly, maintaining eye contact with Harry.

 

Harry nodded his head quickly a few times and Niall knew for sure now that he was trying not to cry. “I love you too. I-I gotta go.”

 

Then he was gone, taking off down the hall toward the elevators and Niall was left feeling empty and like there was a hole in his chest where his heart used to be. He needed to talk to Harry, that much was fact. When he'd be able to do it without breaking down...that remains to be seen. He just can't seem to get past this idea he has in his head that Harry has been resenting him their whole marriage or maybe even longer. He never thought in a million years Harry would lie to him but what if he has been? What if he never wanted to take time off but he did it because Niall refused to quit his job and he didn't want to be on the road eight months out of the year without him?

 

Niall groaned and laid his head down on his desk, slowly tapping his forehead against the edge. Everything was so fucked up and he was so exhausted, he didn't even know if he could think about anything clearly when he's this tired. Whoever said marriage was hard work...they really weren't joking.

 

~~~

 

Things at home that night weren't actually too bad. Niall doesn't know if it's simply because it's him and Harry and they're so in love it just wouldn't stay awkward for long? Or if it's because Rory has started getting offers from Football clubs and he's so excited he didn't shut up long enough to let Harry or Niall talk much.

 

Niall's not sure what to do now though. He's just given Finn his bedtime bottle and finished rocking him to sleep. He's happy, safe and sound in his cot and Niall is now standing outside his and Harry's bedroom wondering if he should go in and get ready for bed like normal? Or sleep in a guest bedroom?

 

He makes the decision to enter the master bedroom when he hears the sound of Rory's laughter from inside. He pushes the door open and can't help the little smile that crosses his lips when he sees his son sprawled out across their bed, the top part of his body draped over Harry's shins.

 

“Hey,” Niall says softly “What have I missed?”

 

“Was tellin' Harry about footie practice after school. My spikes got caught in the grass somehow and I went flying. Then I couldn't get up for five minutes because I was laughing so hard. I just kept picturing how I must have looked like Harry all those times he fell on stage. Of course that got me thinking specifically about that video he showed me of the time he fell in Rio at his concert a couple weeks before you got married. It all went down hill after that. I spent the rest of practice randomly bursting out laughing because I couldn't stop thinking about it.” Rory says, a huge smile on his face.

 

When Niall glances at Harry, he's grinning at Rory, the fondness in his eyes for the teenager almost overwhelming. It does something to Niall every time Harry looks at Rory with such love in his eyes. It's honestly come to the point now where Niall truly does forget sometimes that Rory isn't Harry's biologically.

 

“Anyway,” Rory continues, still laughing at himself “I got sidetracked. I was going to bed when I remembered I forgot to get you to sign a form for school. You were getting Finny to sleep so Harry signed it for me. I'm good to go now so I'm going to bed. I'll probably get up early for a run in the morning. Coming with, Harry?”

 

“Not tomorrow I don't think,” Harry chuckles “I'm getting old. Can't run like I used too.”

 

“You're not old,” Rory rolls his eyes as he gets up off the bed and heads for the door “Anyway, goodnight. Love you both.”

 

Harry and Niall both say goodnight, then the door closes softly behind Rory and it's completely silent. Harry's sitting up against the headboard looking at Niall and Niall is still standing in the same spot he was standing in when he first walked in the room.

 

“Do you really believe I was lying to you this morning when I said I don't resent you?” Harry finally breaks the silence “I need to know, Niall. It's been bothering me all day.”

 

Okay. This was happening right now apparently. Niall shoved a hand through his hair then held his arms out wide, palms up “I don't even know if I know the answer to that right now. I've spent the past twenty-four hours going over things in my head and somewhere along the line, doubts crept in. I started questioning every thing I said or did in our relationship, terrified I somehow pressured the person I love the most into doing something he didn't want to do yet. So I don't know if I actually think you lied or if I've just made myself paranoid. I think-I think maybe if you have been lying it's not been intentional. Like, you didn't even realize you were doing it.”

 

“It's neither. I didn't lie intentionally or unintentionally. I don't resent you. I never have and I never will,” Harry says with feeling “I understand why you came to that conclusion. I've been horrible over the past three weeks, I didn't explain myself very well last night at all. I just made a mess of everything.”

 

“Harry,” Niall sighs, walking over to sit on the edge of the bed “I don't know what other conclusion to come to. You said you felt like you had to choose between your family and your career and you seemed really pissed off because I don't have to. Apparently.”

 

“I did say that. Then you exploded and got angry at me. With good reason, I know. Then we yelled a lot and you went to Willie's to calm down. I never got to finish what I was saying. Niall...baby...” Harry pushes away from the headboard and walks on his knees down to the bottom of the bed to reach out to Niall “I don't feel like I have to choose between my family and my career because of you. If anything, you're the one person in this world I know would do everything possible to make sure I could have both. You would support me one hundred percent no matter what I wanted to do. It's me that's the problem. I made myself think I had to choose.”

 

“What? I'm not sure I'm understanding?” Niall looks perplexed.

 

“I- Niall I miss making albums. I miss performing for people. I didn't realize how much until Gwen brought up 'The Voice'. It was all I could think about and every time I let myself get excited about it I would feel so guilty,” Harry explains.

 

“Guilty about what? For wanting a career?”

 

“No,” Harry shakes his head, his long hair swinging from side to side “Not for wanting a career. For wanting a career that takes me away from home, from my family. There's so much I want to do but I can't stand the thought of being away from our kids. I don't want to miss a single second.”

 

“Harry...God,” Niall leaned forward and pressed a kiss right over Harry's dimple, his lips lingering for a few extra seconds “I feel like such a tit right now. Why didn't you just tell me all of this in the first place? When Gwen first talked to you? We could have talked it over. We could have found a way. Instead we ended up screaming at each other and I spent the worst night of my life thinking the love of my life resented me.”

 

“I'm sorry,” Harry said sheepishly “I did say I didn't handle this situation very well. I've created quite the disaster actually. It's a bit shit.”

 

“It's a bit- oh my God you're insane,” Niall broke out into laughter, throwing his arms around Harry's neck, sending him tumbling backwards onto his back with Niall landing on top of him.

 

“I'll take it. I'll take insane. I'll fucking own it if it means I get you in my arms like this again.” Harry says, holding Niall tight and kissing all over his face.

 

“I'm sorry, darlin'” Niall murmurs next to Harry's ear “I really thought I was doing the right thing, leaving so we could both calm down. I didn't want the kids to hear us yelling and we were both so worked up, I don't know if we could have stopped even when we went back upstairs. I should have just stayed and had faith that we could act like mature adults in front of our kids.”

 

“I don't know what was right or wrong. I just know I hate sleeping without you.”Harry says quietly, his lips against Niall's temple.

 

“Me too, darlin'” Niall says. He burrows in closer to Harry and they're silent for awhile, Harry running his fingers through Niall's soft, brown hair while Niall rubs circles over Harry's collarbone with his thumb, his brain filling up with thoughts and ideas about how to help his husband “H? You shouldn't feel guilty because the career you love takes you away from home sometimes. Most parents don't spend three hundred and sixty five days a year with their children but they're still great parents. My parents divorced when I was young. For a long time I saw my Da a lot more than Mum. She was still the best Mum in the world though. We talked almost everyday, she made sure to be kept in the loop when it came to school and my friends. She was so supportive of everything I did. You'll never be away from our kids as much as my Mum was away from me. What can I do to make you stop doubting yourself?”

 

“I don't know!” Harry whines in frustration “Its like- logically I know everything you're saying is right. I know. The guilt still hits me though and I just- I don't-”

 

“Hey,” Niall lifts his head from Harry's chest and props himself up on his elbow so he can look at Harry “How about you call Gwen and get all the details about the show? You did it once years ago so it might not be much different. Talk to the producers, tell them your concerns, tell them you have kids and see if there's any way you can be apart of the show without having to spend weeks in LA. That's the first step. Lets get informed first.”

 

“Okay...I guess it wouldn't hurt just to ask questions.” Harry said thoughtfully.

 

“Exactly and if you decide to go ahead, Finn will be fine here. I know you'll miss him like crazy but we'll Skype every single day, twice a day if that's what it takes,” Niall assures him.

 

“What about- it's not fair to make you take care of the kids on your own. Rory's practically an adult but Finn is just a baby and you have to work-”

 

“That's easy. I'm a hundred percent sure your Mum would come down from Cheshire to stay here while you're gone. She could take care of Finn during the day when I'm at work. She'll be over the moon when we ask her. You know she's always going on about being tempted to move to London just so she can spend all her time with her grandchildren”

 

“That's true. She doesn't work so she'd probably be here in a heartbeat.” Harry nodded, a thoughtful look on his face. He was obviously thinking about everything Niall said, seeing if it would work.

 

“I've never seen 'The Voice' before. You wouldn't be a coach, you'd be an advisor right? Only the coaches have to be there every week?” Niall questions.

 

“Yeah. I'd just be helping Gwen for one round. Unless the show has changed. I haven't seen it since I did it last. Then in the later rounds they usually have just one judge who advises all the contestants. I don't know if they'd ask me to do that as well.”

 

“Well that's not bad. You'd probably only have to be over there for a week or two at the most. You should do it Harry. It's a great opportunity and you're so smart and talented. You could really help these contestants so much. Some of them are probably really young like you were when you started. You'd be brilliant!” Niall gushes, excitement creeping into his voice.

 

“Really? You think it'd be okay?” Harry asks tentatively. “You promise to Skype me ten times a day and send me a million photos and videos of Finn?”

 

“Yes H,” Niall laughed delightedly “I absolutely will. While I'm at work, your Mum will most likely Skype you and send you photos. I'll take over in the evening. Rory will help too. Also...you know what would be really hot? I could Skype from my office or my car since your Mum will be at the house. We can get up to some very naughty things.”

 

“Niall!” Harry gasped “Jesus, your co-workers would hear you.”

 

“Nah. I'd lock the door and put my headphones in so nobody walking by would hear you. Then you know what I'd do? I'd have one of your headscarves in my pocket so I could pull it out and bite down on it to keep me quiet.” Niall says in a low, sultry voice.

 

“Oh my God,” Harry moans “Can I go now?”

 

Niall throws his head back, cackling loudly at his husband “Thought you might like that.”

 

“Like it?” Harry scoffs “I'm exhausted. I didn't sleep last night. Yet my dick is getting quite excited right now.”

 

“Hmm,” Niall hums “I'll have to help you out then won't I?” He drags his hand down Harry's body to cup his hardening cock “How about I get comfortable here on the bed and you can fuck my mouth?”

 

“Oh my God, baby,” Harry's breathing starts to pick up “Yes. Please, yes.”

 

Niall smirked and got off of Harry so he could flip over onto his back with his head resting on their soft pillows “I'm all yours. Fuck my mouth and come all over my face.”

 

Harry made a sound that sounded like a growl, then he was ripping his clothes off and straddling Niall in less than twenty seconds.

 

Two hours later they were so sated and exhausted, they fell asleep with the lights still on and still covered in come.

 

~~~

 

After that night, things went back to normal. Niall went to work everyday, Harry stayed home with Finn and Rory once school was let out and they were back to being a happy family who spent most of their time together having fun and laughing.

 

In the beginning of July, Finn turned six months old and was getting bigger and brighter everyday. He loved to laugh and smile and was always making noise, trying to talk even though that wouldn't be happening for probably another six months. It was just a bunch of babbling and cooing but Harry and Niall couldn't get enough of it and Harry made sure to post a couple of videos of Niall making Finn laugh on Twitter. The fans loved it and Harry teared up more than once when reading some of the comments. So many people congratulated him on having such a beautiful family. Others thanked him for sharing, saying they miss him on the radio and on tour but at least he isn't hiding and they still get to be a part of what's happening in his life.

 

He was so grateful for everyone standing by him and so thrilled they still wanted to hear music from him and that's why he got to work over the summer recording some music. He talked it over with Niall and Niall was nothing but supportive, even offering to help in any way he can. He could play guitar or help Harry tweak some of the lyrics to some songs if need be. Harry accepted gratefully and called Liam and Jon to see if they'd like to work on another album with him? They were ecstatic to hear from Harry and coordinated their schedules so they could come to Harry's house to work in his home studio.

 

A new record deal was easy. He had a good relationship with his old label and they told him to contact them when he was ready to make music again. After discussing it at length with Louis and Niall, he met with Simon Cowell, the head of the label and told him what he wanted- to make an album and release it like normal. He'd do the press as long as it was spread out a bit so he wasn't away from home for a long stretch of time and he didn't want to do a major world tour.

 

Simon thought about it for a bit then was frank with Harry like he always was. “Harry, I'm going to be honest with you. You've made a lot of money for this label over the years and you've more than earned the right to do this your way. I have no issue with what you want to do. I have no doubt your album will sell but you know as well as I do that the bulk of the money is made in touring. Could we perhaps come to a compromise and say...do a small tour around the UK, some dates around Europe as well. We can spread the dates out so you can go home in between shows to be with your family. I'd be willing to settle for that for now then perhaps later we can talk about a small tour just of major American cities and if it suits you, it can be planned when Niall can take vacation from his job if he'd like to go with you. Is that something you would be willing to consider?”

 

Harry was definitely willing to consider it, in fact he actually really liked the idea. He talked to Niall about it that same night and because Niall is a fucking Gem, he simply shrugged and told Harry he'd be happy to do it that way.

 

“I mean, I get six weeks of vacation time a year. I could take three or four weeks of that in the summer if you wanted to tour America then. It would be really nice actually. Bring back lots of good memories from our extended honeymoon. We'd have Finn with us this time, which will make it even better of course.” Niall said with a huge grin on his face “I wouldn't be opposed to hiring a nanny for the trip as well. I could use the help while you're working and he or she would also be able to babysit so we can have some romantic alone time.”

 

“So you can fuck like bunnies you mean?” Louis snorts, rolling his eyes at his two friends.

 

“Yes. Would you like to watch?” Niall deadpans, nearly sending Harry sliding off the chair and onto the floor from laughing so hard.

 

“You kinky bastards!” Louis gasps, a scandalized look on his face “You'd probably like to be watched wouldn't you?”

 

Actually no. Both Niall and Harry were a bit possessive when it came to sex. Neither one liked the idea of anyone else seeing the other in such an intimate way. It was for them and them only but Louis didn't need to know that. Torturing Louis was half the fun in their friendship.

 

They discussed a few more things that night then Harry and Louis set up another meeting with Simon to hash out the contract. Once Harry's lawyer looked it over and gave Harry the go ahead, Harry signed and was officially ready to make a new album.

 

The plan was to get the album out in late Spring of the next year, May or June, then Harry could spend the weeks up to the release and a few weeks after doing promotion. Spread out, of course, so Harry can pop home as much as possible to be with his family. In August, Niall would take four weeks of his vacation and Harry would tour America then. Major cities like Boston, New York, Philly, Atlanta, Chicago, St. Louis, Kansas City, Las Vegas and of course LA. If the demand was there, he'd perform stadiums like his last few tours which could accommodate a lot more people than an Arena. That way more people could see his shows to hopefully make up for the fact he wouldn't be doing as extensive a tour as normal. His fans were awesome and he was pretty sure they would understand he was in his thirties now, with a family, and he wanted to be there for them instead of on the road all the time.

 

As for 'The Voice', Simon thought it was a great idea and said there was absolutely no conflict with the label keeping him from being an advisor. In fact, he wanted to use Harry's appearance on the show to get the word out that he was working on a new album for the Spring and potentially have Harry perform one of the songs he had planned for the album on one of the results show.

 

Everything was falling into place and by the time Rory's seventeenth birthday came around at the end of July, the contracts were signed and Harry was already going through the hundreds of songs in his journal, trying to pick sixteen or seventeen songs for the album.

 

That's what Harry was doing when Rory came down into the studio the weekend before his birthday to let Harry know his friends would be over soon. Harry and Niall asked him what he wanted to do for his birthday and he said he'd really just like to invite a bunch of friends over to hang by the pool and play footie in their large backyard. Harry and Niall agreed and were actually more excited for it than Rory.

 

You see, in June, after hours upon hours of conversations with Harry and Niall, especially Niall, Rory had chosen to accept the offer Arsenal had put forth to him and he was now officially a part of the Arsenal academy. So today would be the first time Harry and Niall would be meeting some of the friends he very quickly made since he joined the U/18 squad.

 

“Alright. Some ground rules. Obviously some of your friends are eighteen. Your Dad and I are fine if they want to have a few beer but there will be no out of control drinking. We will be watching closely so if you don't want us to interfere, you'll make sure your friends don't get rowdy. We will not hesitate to get involved if someone gets out of hand and we have no problem being killjoys and putting an end to your party. Also, everyone gives up their car keys to me. Nobody will be leaving here tonight and driving if they've been drinking. Your Dad, myself and Louis will give everyone a ride home or they're welcome to stay here. You can all camp out on the game room floor if you want but the guest bedrooms are off limits. The top floors are off limits period. I'd rather not have a bunch of rowdy boys destroying the bedrooms. Understood?” Harry looks at Rory, a very serious no nonsense look on his face.

 

“Yes,” Rory nodded “I've already spoken to everybody when I invited them. I don't think anyone will drink much. We're all really serious about keeping in shape for Football.”

 

“Good. We'll still be watching though. Other than that, try not to break anything. You can be as loud as you want, Niall is bringing your brother to spend the night with your Aunt Gemma. It might take three of us to pry him out of her arms but we'll worry about that tomorrow.” Harry chuckles.

 

Rory rolled his eyes “She barely lets me go when I'm over there.”

 

“She loves us all very much. It's a good thing. Most of the time.” Harry laughs.

 

“Thanks for letting me do this. I want the new friends I'm making to meet Zee and Tyler and some of the lads from the school team. I don't want them to think I'll forget about them now that I'm a Gunner.” Rory says.

 

“That's good. It's important to keep your best mates close. Your life will get a bit crazy once you make a name for yourself in Football and you'll need the people who knew you before to keep you grounded. No matter what you'll know you can always trust them.” Harry says, a fond smile on his face as he looks at his boy.

 

“I know. They're my best mates. They're not going anywhere if I can help it.” Rory nods then tilts his head toward Harry “How's the song selection coming?”

 

Harry blew out a breath and scratched the top of his head “It's always the most frustrating part for me. I've never had trouble writing so I've got hundreds of songs to choose from. I'm not recording every single one of them, it would take forever, but I want to record thirty, maybe forty, and once they're done, or at least a rough demo is done, I can really delve into deciding what I want on the album. What direction I want it to go in. It's the longest process. Once this part is all done it's all easy from there.”

 

“It'll probably be really good. All your albums were good. The first one was a little too cliche pop but you were eighteen and nobody knew who you were so I assume you pretty much had to do what the label wanted right?”

 

“Exactly,” Harry laughs “Once I was a hit they let me have more creative control and that's really when my career took off. I have the best fans in the world. I honestly can't wait for them to hear my new album, even though I don't even know what it will sound like yet.”

 

“Well I can't wait to hear it!” Rory was saying just as a strange voice called out to him from upstairs.

 

“Rory? Are you down there?” The voice asked.

 

“Brian?” Rory called back, a quizzical look on his face. The guy called Brian and someone else came down the stairs and around the corner with huge smiles on their faces.

 

“Hey dude! Your brother let us in. He said we'd find you down here,” Brian said, then the three of them greeted each other with fist bumps.

 

“My brother let you in, did he?” Rory quirked an eyebrow, amusement in his voice “My six month old brother who doesn't really do much but piss, shit and drool, let you in?”

 

“Ummm?” The other guy looked at Rory then at Brian “No? Your other brother? Was that not your brother? I mean...he looks just like you?”

 

Harry and Rory turn to look at each other with a gleeful look before they both burst into laughter, thoroughly confusing the two boys in front of them. Of course Niall chooses this moment to walk in, a look of amusement on his face as he takes in the sight before him.

 

“What did I miss?” Niall asked, raising an eyebrow and looking back and forth between Rory and Harry and the two boys.

 

Harry looks at his husband and really, he can't fault the two boys for thinking he was Rory's brother. He was wearing a pair of dark blue skinny jeans with a pair of high top vaider Supras that were mostly red with a bit of white and royal blue on the heel. His t-shirt was a gray Aerosmith band t-shirt from their nineteen seventy-five “Toys in the Attic” tour. It had the bands classic winged logo in the center of a round distressed image in red with 'Walk This Way' printed on the top and “Toys in the Attic 1975” along the bottom. His hair wasn't styled, just laying flat on his head with his fringe sweeping across his forehead.

 

When he wasn't dressed in a suit for work, Niall looked a lot younger than his thirty-three years. He didn't dress like a lot of men in their thirties dressed, he had a great sense of style and loved to dress pretty casual.

 

“Brian, Marco, that is not my brother, that is my Dad,” Rory said while pointing at Niall. He pointed at Harry next “And my step-dad, Harry.”

 

“Oh!” Brian and Marco both looked at Niall and Harry with wide eyes and their mouths opened in the shape of an “O”. “Umm...sorry?”

 

“Oh no. No no no. Don't be sorry!” Niall said, his eyes shining and a gleeful look on his face “I love when people think I'm a lot younger than I am. Especially when they think I'm younger than Harry.”

 

“Like that ever happens,” Harry rolled his eyes “Nobody thinks I'm older than you.”

 

“Lies!” Niall laughed and turned to Rory's friends to shake their hands “Call me Niall. It's nice to meet you.”

 

“It's nice to meet you, too,” Brian says politely while Marco still looks at bit perplexed.

 

“I'm sorry. Did you just say he's your step-dad?” Marco asked, pointing toward Harry. Rory nodded and Marco started to shake his head slowly “We can never tell my sister. She'll come out to Hertfordshire while we're practising and follow you home.”

 

“What?” Rory says in disbelief.

 

“Oh yes. She's obsessed,” Maro says, nodding his head seriously “If I ever listened to a word she said, I'm sure I'd know everything about Harry. His whole life story. I usually tune her out when she speaks though.” Marco stops talking for a moment, looking like he's contemplating something when he gasps and his eyes go wide again “Oh my God! Niall plus Harry equals Narry!! So much in my life has just begun to make sense!”

 

At this point, Niall, Harry and Rory were only about a minute away from rolling around on the floor laughing while Brian looked on confused and Marco looked at them all with a sheepish grin “Sorry.”

 

“I literally have no idea what's happening right now,” Brian said, his eyes darting back and forth between everyone.

 

“I'll tell ya later,” Rory says with a wave of his hand “The relevant information here is that they're my parents and you can probably call them Niall and Harry.”

 

"Yes please!” Harry says with a huge smile while Niall simply nodded.

 

“Alright, let's go out back,” Rory said to his friends before turning to Niall and Harry “I'll be listening for the gate buzzer so I can let everybody in.”

 

“Nah,” Niall waved a hand dismissively “Go on out back with your mates. I'll let everyone in and send them through to you.”

 

“Okay. Thanks Dad!” Rory smiled wide at Niall.

 

“If you need us, we'll be down here probably. I'm going to help Harry out a bit. I gotta make sure he picks songs about me to record.” Niall smirks.

 

“Oh you wish,” Harry scoffs “Just for that I'm not going to put any songs about you on the album. All my songs will be about Mcdreamy.”

 

“Oh God. Run for your lives,” Rory starts shooing his friends toward the stairs “This could go on for ages.”

 

Rory and his friends left to go upstairs, Niall following five minutes later. He was gone for about an hour when he finally walked back into Harry's studio, wrapping his arms around Harry from behind and kissing the back of his neck.

 

“Mmm,” Harry hummed “Did everyone make it okay?”

 

“Seems so. They're all out back, enjoying the London heat wave. We can make an appearance later. Check on things and meet some more of Rory's teammates.” Niall said quietly, his thumbs sliding up under Harry's shirt just enough to brush against his stomach before tucking into the waistband of Harry's jeans.

 

“Anyone else think you're his brother?” Harry asked, turning his head to look back at Niall with a cheeky grin.

 

Niall laughed and nuzzled his face against Harry's neck “Nah. I introduced myself whenever I let people in.”

 

“Rory seems happy,” Harry turned around so he was facing Niall, slipping his arms around Niall's waist and kissing him softly a few times “He's fitting in so well at the academy. Friends with everyone already. I knew he would be. He's such a people person.”

 

“He's the best. I'm so proud of him,” Niall murmured, tipping his head up for another kiss. Their lips lingered for a moment before pressing together again and then they were deepening the kiss, their tongues sliding together slow and languid until they broke apart to get some air.

 

“We probably should stop before this gets any hotter. We don't need Rory walking down here with one of his friends and catching us half naked.” Harry says against Niall's lips, pecking him a few more time before stepping back a bit.

 

“You're right of course. Just love your lips so much. I love that after five years together I still get turned on by one kiss or touch from you. I think I love you more and more every year. It's an amazing feeling.” Niall says, a tender look on his face as he looks up into his husbands eyes.”

 

“God!” Harry half shouted, throwing his head back and closing his eyes before wrapping his arms around Niall's waist again and lifting him up in the air. He swings them around in circles, Niall laughing his loud, boisterous laugh while Harry tries to kiss every inch of his face through his giggles “You make me so fucking happy! I feel like I'm sixteen and falling in love for the first time. You make me feel that way everyday.”

 

“The feeling is mutual darlin'” Niall says through his laughter as he hung onto Harry tightly, his arms around Harry's neck. When Harry finally puts him down, it's because Niall's phone dings and he goes to look at the text just in case it's Gemma about Finn.

 

“Oh!” Niall says in surprise “It's Jenn! She says she's in London for a few days and wants to pop in.”

 

Harry snorts and bursts into laughter, his hands on his hips as he bends at the waist.

 

“What's so funny?” Niall looks confused.

 

“Nothing. Nothing,” Harry giggles one last time before smiling at Niall “It's just- I think you have more celebrity friends than I do.”

 

“Oh shut up!” Niall rolls his eyes “She's your friend too.”

 

“She is, yeah, and I love her. She's a great friend but she's only my friend because she was yours first. Much like the Duchess.” Harry smirks “If I had met Jenn first in passing at some sort of party, I'm sure we'd be friendly but probably we wouldn't have become friends. That happened because of you. She called you to ask how you handle the paps and the next things I know you're talking all the time and have so much in common.”

 

Niall shrugs “If I had a sister, I'd want her to be just like Jenn.”

 

“I know,” Harry looked at Niall fondly “Tell her to come on over now if she's free.”

 

“Sounds great. She can help chaperone the party,” Niall says,his fingers typing out a text.

 

“Yeah right,” Harry snorted “She's more likely to join the party.”

 

“That's true,” Niall says, his eyes looking up at the ceiling, contemplating “Yeah, she definitely would.”

 

Niall's phone dings after a moment and after quickly typing something back, he lays his phone down and look at Harry “She says she'll be free soon. Will be here in a few hours.”

 

“Alright. In the meantime, I want you to look at this song. I've got the lyrics and the melody in my head. I need to get a band in to record the music so I can get in the booth and lay down some verses. I'm just going to play it on my acoustic so you can get a feel for it. Tell me what you think.” Harry says, gathering up his guitar and fitting the strap over his shoulder.

 

They work on the song for about an hour, Harry getting Niall's opinion on some of the lyrics, and slowly figuring out how the song will sound when drums, a bass, an electric guitar are added.

 

They go upstairs after that and head outside to see how everything is going. Some of the kids are in the pool, others are playing footie, while a few others are sitting at the tables around the pool, laughing and chatting while listening to the music.

 

Rory sees them come out and takes the time to introduce them to all his friends, the ones they haven't already met, and after saying hello to everyone they head back inside to wait for Jennifer.

 

She arrives a couple hours later, hugging Niall and Harry and accepting a glass of lemonade before sitting down on the couch in their living room, tucking her legs up underneath her.

 

“You're both looking happy,” She smiles kindly at them.

 

“We're very happy. Things are going really well right now,” Niall says “As you can hear, Rory has some friends over to celebrate his birthday with him, he's signed with Arsenal now, work is going great for me and Harry is starting work on a new album.”

 

“Wow,” Jenn blows out a breath, then laughs “Where do I begin? You told me about Rory the last time we spoke. Arsenal. That's Soccer right? He's brilliant at it. How's he doing so far?”

 

“He's so great,” Harry gushes “Friends with the whole team already. Most of them are out in our backyard right now.”

 

“Yeah he's really happy. He's getting the opportunity to do what he loves, what he's really good at. I couldn't be more proud,” Niall adds.

 

“And what about Finnegan? I haven't met him yet! He's the most adorable baby. I live for the pictures Niall texts me and the ones you put on Twitter. He seems incredible. You have a great family. It makes me happy. You guys deserve it.” She says, reaching over and patting Harry's hand.

 

“Thank you. You deserve it too. What's going on with you? Last time we saw you, you and your boyfriend were happy and going strong. Any signs of a wedding coming?” Niall asks.

 

“Sadly no.” She sighs, her expression turning sad. “We broke up about a month ago. It was low key. I haven't really talked about it much.”

 

“Oh God, I'm so sorry,” Harry moves closer to her on the couch and wraps an arm around her “We can talk about something else.”

 

“It's fine. I'm fine. What hurts the most is that I thought we wanted the same things. I thought I knew him but I didn't. He actually asked me for an open relationship. Like- that's fine for some people. I understand why some couples choose to do this and that they're okay with it but not me. I'm a monogamous kind of girl. I love commitment. I love the intimacy of it. I can't be okay with my boyfriend fucking some other girl while I'm across the world filming a movie,” She says, shaking her head, her eyes looking down at her hands “We were together for a while. I thought he was the one I was finally going to settle down with. Makes me really question my ability to pick a man.”

 

“I understand. I could never have an open relationship either. I wouldn't consider it even if I knew I wasn't going to see Niall for a full year.” Harry says emphatically “I love commitment too. I also get jealous so any man who goes near Niall would probably lose his dick.”

 

“Oh my God!” Jenn laughs loudly and turns to Niall “And here I've been thinking he was all sweet and innocent all these years.”

 

“My husband is far from innocent, Jenny. His wide eyes and dimples are deceiving.” Niall smirks “Don't let them fool you.”

 

“Duly noted,” She says with a laugh “Anyway, I'm doing the rounds, promoting my latest film and then I've decided to take some time off. At least a year, maybe more. I just want some time to myself for once. To be quiet and figure out what I want, where I'm going next.”

 

“That sounds like a good idea. You've been doing films every year since your late teens was it? It's been over ten years anyway, and you haven't taken a break. This could be good for you. You're welcome to stay here with us for a bit if you want. Get away from Hollywood.” Harry offers.

 

Jenn looks between Harry and Niall for a minute, her brain working overtime “You know...if you're serious, I might take you up on that. I have a plan. I want to buy a place in France, in the countryside, and being in London would be close enough for me to handle all the details with an agent once I find one. I've actually found a house I like when I was looking online myself” She sits up straighter getting excited now “Of course I found it by googling real estate in France so I'd need to get an agent but once I do, I at least want to go look at the place and see if I still like it. How much is five million Euros in American money? Do you know? I can probably google that too.”

 

“In today's market, five million euros would be about five and a half million U.S. Dollars.” Niall says.

 

“How do you know that? Off the top of your head?” Jenn looked at him with her mouth hanging open.

 

“I watch the market. One Euro is a dollar twenty U.S. Dollars. Then just do the math,” Niall shrugs.

 

Jenn turns her head and silently looks at Harry for a moment before saying “That's hot.”

 

“I know,” Harry looks back at her, nodding his head seriously “I live with it everyday. It's a wonder I'm still breathing.”

 

“Oh for fucks sake! You're both ridiculous. It's math.” Niall rolls his eyes.

 

“An intelligent man is very sexy. Harry agrees with me.” Jenn says, smirking at Niall.

 

“I do. You should have heard the thoughts going around in my head the first time I saw him wearing his black framed glasses. I wanted to attack him. Just throw him on his desk and ravage him.” Harry says, a look on his face that clearly indicates he's remembering the moment.

 

“You're both hot. I would have been down for watching that.” She says with a wink.

 

“Okaaayyyy,” Niall stands up “You two can discuss your sex lives all day if you want. I'm going outside to see if Rory needs anything.”

 

“Not without me!” Jenn jumps up “I've only met Rory on Skype. I have to see him.”

 

“Alright. Come on,” Niall says, leading the way out of the living room, into the kitchen and out the double doors into the back yard. “Rory!” Niall called to his son who was playing footie “You have a visitor.”

 

“J-Law!!!” Rory cheers when he looks up and sees her standing next to Niall and Harry “What are you doing here?” He asked as he jogged over.

 

“Give me a hug first,” She holds her arms out, Rory going into them willingly, laughing as he gave her a quick hug. When she steps back from him she gives him an appraising look and smiles wide “Look just like your Dad. Of course I could see that on Skype but I can see it even more in person. Even got that dimple in your chin. I'm so, so happy to meet you. I'm in London doing promotion for my latest film so I dropped by to see your parents.”

 

“That's great! I saw adverts for your film on the telly. I can't wait to see it. Scary and suspenseful. My favourite!” Rory beams.

 

“Well I hope you like it then,” She smiles “You look like you're enjoying yourself. You're lucky! I'm pretty sure when I was seventeen my parents wouldn't have let me have a party, even one they were at home for. They weren't nearly as laid back as Niall and Harry.”

 

“Yeah, I'm really lucky,” Rory sends a smile toward Harry and Niall “I know I am. That's why I try my best not to take advantage of it.”

 

A few of Rory's friends approach then, more than one of them with wide eyes. The one Niall thinks is named Jamie, looks between Jennifer, Rory, then Harry, and Niall “Are famous people like, an everyday thing here? Is David Beckham going to walk through those doors next? Because if he is, I should warn you, I'll probably faint.”

 

“Becks was almost retired when you were born,” Niall laughs.

 

“Yeah but my Dad was born in the eighties. He watched his whole career and I grew up hearing all about it and watching old matches on the telly. He's a legend.” Jamie says with wide eyes.

 

“I'm American,” Jenn pipes in “I'm only aware of Beckham because of his underwear ads. He's probably good at soccer too. I wouldn't know. It legitimately looks like a bunch of grown men chasing a ball back and forth, to me. I realize there's more to it. There's actually tremendous skill and lots of strategy. I just can't figure it out for the life of me and I've tried! I've really tried. Don't you have something to do with the strategy part of it Rory?”

 

“Depends,” Rory shrugs “I can play two positions. Striker or Attacking Midfielder.”

 

“Right and the attacking thing...midfielder, controls everything right? Someone told me that. Who told me that? Was it you Niall?”

 

“I don't know,” Niall groaned “I gave up trying to explain footie to you about six months after we met.”

 

“No, you're right. Rory's really good at it, too.” Jamie says excitedly “We've only been playing together for three weeks and it's already easy for me. I'm a striker. I wait for him to get me the ball and he always does. I barely have to do anything. We're going to kick some arse when we start playing matches.”

 

“To be fair, you always get yourself away from the defenders so I can get you the ball. I don't do it alone,” Rory says.

 

“Lies. All lies,” Jamie whispers then turns his head when a loud “Oi!!” is sent their way. The lads over playing footie are waving for them to come back to resume the game so Rory and Jamie say goodbye to Jennifer then run back to join the game.

 

“He's an impressive kid. I hope one day I'll have one just like him,” Jenn says with a smile.

 

“Yeah well, if that's your way of asking for Niall's sperm, it ain't happening.” Harry says, a playful glare on his face.

 

“Darn,” Jenn says sarcastically “You caught me. That's exactly what I came here for. Never mind that nothing I have to offer will remotely help in getting sperm from Niall” She says while waving a hand over her body.

 

Niall burst into loud laughter and the three of them wandered back inside before too much attention was drawn to them, disrupting Rory's party.

 

They spent the rest of the afternoon chatting and catching up. Jennifer stayed when they ordered a truck full of pizza's to feed everybody and she was still there later when Louis showed up to help out if anyone needed rides home.

 

By the time all was said and done, the only person leaving with Louis that night was Jennifer.

 

~~~

 

Three days later, on Rory's actual birthday, he came downstairs for breakfast to find Harry, Niall and Finn all wearing party hats. There was a banner saying “Happy Birthday” hanging over the cupboards and Harry had a huge stack of pancakes waiting for him to dig into.

 

“Thank you,” Rory said shyly “You really didn't have to do any of this. You let me have that party and-”

 

“Shut it! It's your birthday. We love you very, very much and we get to do whatever we want for you. No objections. Here's your hat.” Harry says, handing a party hat to Rory. He doesn't hesitate putting it on, making a funny face at Finn as he does so, making the baby squeal happily.

 

“Oh Finny.” Rory laughs, leaning in to kiss his brothers cheek a couple times “You're the cutest baby ever. I love you.”

 

Harry and Niall share a fond look as they watch their son interact with his baby brother. Finn was only six months old but they already had a special bond. Rory always made time for him, spending hours playing with him and even babysitting a couple of times so Harry and Niall could go out on a date. It didn't matter how large the age difference was, they just knew they'd always be close, no matter where Rory is in the world, he'll always find time to come home to see his brother.

 

“He loves you, too. In fact I'm convinced you're his favourite. He always goes crazy when you walk into the room, squealing and banging his hands on everything.” Niall says with a laugh.

 

“He's my little man. Aren't ya Finny?” Rory leans in and gives his brother an eskimo kiss, making Finn squeal again and smack his little hand on Rory's cheek.

 

They all laugh then dig into the delicious pancakes Harry made while Finn sat happily in his high chair, banging his hands on his little tray. Afterward, Niall left for work but what Rory didn't know was he was waiting in the driveway for he and Harry to come out so they could give him his present.

 

When they came out ten minutes later, Rory thinking Harry was driving him to training like normal, Niall stood in the driveway with his hands behind his back and a huge smile on his face as he took in Rory's reaction.

 

“Oh my God,” Rory stopped abruptly. So abruptly Harry and Finn nearly walked into him “What is that? Oh my God it's a car. Why is there a car? Is it-?”

 

“Happy Birthday love,” Niall said, walking up to his son and kissing his cheek before wrapping him up in a hug. “We hope you like it.”

 

“Are you for real?” Rory asks incredulously, stepping away from his Dad to get a closer look at the car “This is for me? _For_ _me_? It's a bloody Mustang!”

 

“It's your favourite car I hear.” Niall says, grinning mischievously.

 

“Oh my God!” Rory turns quickly to look at Harry “You!!” He points “A few months ago. You said you wanted to get a new car and you asked what my favourite car is. Said you wanted a bunch of different opinions.”

 

“I did indeed,” Harry says gleefully “I was so good. You didn't expect a thing. I'm usually terrible at lying, Probably because I hate it. Anyway, I'm perfectly fine with my Audi. This is all for you love.”

 

“Jesus,” Rory whispers, turning back to the car and running his hand over the hood. It was a Shelby GT350R Mustang. It was Gray with two blue stripes down the middle of the roof and the hood “She's- she's beautiful. You didn't have to do this. I would have been fine with a-a new shirt or something.”

 

Niall and Harry both laughed while Finn blew bubbles against Harry's shirt, dampening it with drool “That's exactly why we were okay with getting you a car. The fact you didn't want anything or would be fine with a new shirt, proves how unselfish you are.” Niall says passionately “You're mature, responsible, you work hard, your grades in school have been stellar while playing footie and keeping up with your friends and your family. You deserve this, Rory, and we know we can trust you. You're a great driver and you won't risk anything by doing something stupid.”

 

“I don't know what to say,” Rory practically whispers, his eyes glassy with tears “I just- thank you so much. This means so much to me. I love you both so much.”

 

“We love you, too. More than words can say.” Harry says, wrapping his free arm around Rory's shoulders and pulling him into a hug, kissing his forehead. Niall joins in wrapping an arm around both Harry's and Rory's waists, putting him face to face with Finn. He gives him a playful kiss on the nose, making the baby giggle and babble nonsense. The three adults laugh at him, only making him giggle and babble even more.

 

“Oh my God, he's so cute,” Rory coos at his brother, taking one of his tiny hands in his and pretending to eat it. Finn squeals with excitement, kicking his little feet out and waving his hands around nearly hitting Harry in the face.

 

“Alright, alright, your brother will still be cute later. You need to get going so you're not late for training. Here's your keys,” Niall hands him a set of keys to the Mustang. Rory takes them with a huge grin on his face and heads over to the car, opening the door and throwing his bag in the backseat. He starts it up, admiring the soft purr of the engine then he waves at Niall and Harry and soon he's out of sight, out the gate and on the road to the Arsenal training complex.

 

“Well. There he goes,” Niall says, a bittersweet smile on his face “I'm so proud of him yet at the same time it feels like I just got him and he's already walking out of our lives.”

 

“He's not though. As long as he's with Arsenal, he's right here in London, which means he can live with us as long as he wants, no matter how much money he starts making. In the future, if he gets transferred or loaned to another team somewhere else, he'll still call us everyday and he'll still come home as often as he can. He doesn't want to be away from you anymore than you want to be away from him. He admires and looks up to you so much. You're as close in two years as you would have been if you knew him for all seventeen years. Everything is going to be fine for us. We'll always have Rory.” Harry assures his husband.

 

“You do know he loves you just as much as he loves me right? You talk like he'd only want to stick around for me.” Niall gives Harry a funny look.

 

“No, no. I know he loves me just as much. I consider him mine. Most of the time I forget he's not my biological son. Still, no matter what, you are his father. He has your blood and your genes and I truly believe that creates a bond between parent and child that nobody can ever break. I'm not saying I don't have a bond with him because I do, it's just different than yours.” Harry explains, resting his cheek on top of the silky hair on Finn's head.

 

“I love the bond you have with him,” Niall looks down and smiles almost shyly “It just- it makes me so happy. You, Rory and Finn are the people I love the most. I know that Rory calls you Harry but did you know he refers to you as his Dad?”

 

“What do you mean? He introduces us to his friends as his parents. I know that.” Harry looks at Niall quizzically.

 

“He does but that's not what I meant. I've heard him before, like when you got him those tickets to see Five Seconds of Summer at the O2. His friend Marcus was here, they were working on a school project and he asked where Rory got the tickets. He said 'Oh, my Dad got them for me.' That's just one of the times I've head him refer to you that way.” Niall says, his smile growing wider when he sees the look on Harry's face.

 

“Niaallllll,” Harry whines, wiping at his eyes with the hand not holding Finn “Why do you have to make me cry first thing in the morning?”

 

Niall laughs and leans in for a kiss before pulling back and getting his keys out of his pocket “Because you're beautiful even when you cry. I gotta get going to work. I love you. Love you too, Finn.”

 

"We love you too. Right Finn? We love Daddy so much" Harry says, lifting Finn's hand to wave at Niall "Have a good day at work love. Drive safe"

 

Niall promises he will then kisses Harry again quickly before getting in his car and heading off to work.

 

 

~~~

 

 

The rest of the Summer goes by pretty quickly. Since Niall gets six weeks of vacation a year, he took three weeks in August off so Harry worked hard to get a lot done for his album, leaving him free to go on a family vacation with Niall and Finn. Rory had training so he couldn't go but he was very adamant that his parents go on a vacation so they rented out a place not far from Marseille in France and spent two weeks there relaxing with Finn and doing every tourist thing they could find. The place they rented was right on the water so in the morning before the sun got too hot, Harry and Niall would take Finn out on the beach and let him feel the sand in his toes, which of course made him giggle. Then they'd bring him to the water and hold him so that the waves gently lapped over his feet. That made him squeal with laughter and had not only Harry and Niall cooing over him, but also random women who see and hear him when they're coming out of the water. Niall had a fleeting thought that he now understood why single men sometimes use their baby to get women.

It was amazing having Finn with them. Sure, sometimes it took longer to do the tourist thing because he needed to be changed or fed, sometimes he'd just get cranky, but it didn't bother them. They were on vacation and had all the time in the world to do what they wanted. They were also very fortunate to have jobs that paid well (an understatement for Harry) so if they missed something, they could always go back some other time.

Louis tried to get them to hire a nanny to go with them, insisting they'd never get any time alone with a young baby to take care of.

He couldn't have been more wrong.

In the evening when Finn went down for the night, they had hours to enjoy a romantic dinner and a glass of wine. They had hours to sit outside on the deck facing the beach, Niall draped across Harry's lap as they watched the beautiful sunset. Then they had hours as the evening turned to midnight and into the early morning hours, to slip between the crisp, white sheets and slowly take each other apart, kissing and caressing every inch of skin before taking turns fucking each other.

It was an incredible holiday. So relaxing and fun. Neither one of them wanted it to end but real life was calling and they had to get back home to Rory and their jobs.

They easily slipped back into their normal routine, Niall going to work every morning and Harry working on his album. Ed dropped in to produce a song they wrote together but didn't put on his last album. They felt it was a better fit for Harry and when it was done, Harry was seriously considering it for his first single. He also recorded a song written by Sia. Jon had worked with her before and asked if she wanted to write something to pitch to Harry. She was happy to and wrote a song with Harry specifically in mind. Harry loved it immediately. Her songs were always very powerful and the music was perfect for Harry's voice, showcasing his range perfectly.

It was that song that Simon suggested Harry perform on 'The Voice' and Harry agreed. It was the perfect song to introduce him back into the world of music after a few years absence.

Harry's part in the show was in November. He was only going to be gone a week but you would think it was a year with the way he was acting. He spent the most time with Finn, as the stay at home parent, so leaving him now for the first time was really difficult for him.

"He's going to be fine darlin'. I promise you that." Niall whispered against Harry's ear the night before he was leaving. He pressed a lingering kiss to Harry's cheek and held him close in their bed, his front pressed against Harry's back.

"I know he'll be fine. You're his Dad and you'll take good care of him. There's nobody else I'd trust my kids with completely. That's not the issue. I'm the issue. I'm acting like an idiot. I just started thinking about it earlier and I realized that tomorrow will be the first day since we brought Finn home that I won't see him. What if he thinks I abandoned him? That I don't love him anymore?" Harry sniffs, indicating he's crying.

Niall turns Harry over onto his back and kissed his softly, his thumb removing the tears from his cheeks "He won't think that for a minute, darlin'. You're a loving, attentive father to him, you're his Papa and he knows how much you love him. Plus everyday that you're gone he's going to see and hear you on Skype. I promise you, H, he will never think you don't love him when you have to go away."

Harry lay silently on his back, staring up into Niall's eyes. They were always so calming to him. They made him feel loved and warm, safe and secure. "I love you," He says, laughing a little as he wipes the remaining tears from his face "You never fail to calm me down and make me feel better. You're my rock"

"You do the same for me," Niall moves his body over Harry's so that he's straddling his thighs. He leans down and gently kisses Harry's neck, then continues on down over his chest and abs, his tongue coming out to lick down over his happy trail "Do you want me to make you feel good before you have to leave in the morning? Whatever you want."

"I always want you," Harry murmurs, his arms winding around Niall's neck to pull him closer "It's almost been six years and it hasn't changed. One look, one smile, one touch from you sets me on fire. Nobody has ever fucked me as good as you always do. I can't get enough of you. Maybe you've noticed."

"You're good for a guys ego, aren't ya darlin'?" Niall smiled lovingly down at his husband, a faint blush on his cheeks. He didn't see himself the same way Harry did. He knew he was attractive but he didn't think he was anything overly special. He was no Zayn Malik, that's for sure. He's pretty sure even straight men were staring at Zayn when he met him at the Grammy's one year. Harry doesn't agree, though, and Niall can't deny it makes him feel good when he turns Harry on so much.

"I want you to fuck me so hard I'll still feel it days after I land in LA," Harry whispers in Niall's ear "Please baby?"

"Jesus Christ," Niall moaned "I'll do whatever you want. Anything you want, darlin'. I'd do anything for you"

"Good," Harry laughed breathlessly, sinking his teeth into Niall's shoulder "Now get naked!"

 

~~~

 

Rory knocked on Niall and Harry's bedroom door late one night while Harry was in LA. Niall was reading while he waited for Harry to call him, so he put the book on his bedside table along with his glasses, beckoning his son in "What's up?"

"I need some advice," Rory chewed on his bottom lip as he took a seat on the bed in front of Niall "So, if someone is gay, it's not a good idea to try and get them to open up to you right? Like, they need to come to terms with it on their own then come out on their own terms?"

Niall stays quiet for a moment, contemplating his son. He's not sure where this is coming from or why, but he figures he needs to just roll with it and answer his sons questions honestly while he waits for Rory to explain a bit more "It's different for everyone I guess, but yes, I don't think anyone has the right to out someone else. It takes some people a long time to come to terms with their sexuality. The world is much more accepting of the LGBTQ community these days, but there are still some very homophobic people in the world and straight relationships are still what's considered the norm in society, so realizing you're different than what society expects you to be is pretty scary."

"Yeah. I get that. I understand what you mean," Rory says thoughtfully.

Niall watches his son again as he seems to be thinking long and hard about something "Rory...are you questioning your own sexuality? Because that's okay. You can talk to me or Harry about absolutely anything. You know that right?"

"Me?" Rory laughed "No, I'm all about the boobs. Lots and lots of boobs!"

Niall screwed his face up, sending Rory into a fit of laughter "You should see your face right now!"

"God," Niall shakes his head "I really don't see the appeal. They just...jiggle around everywhere and get in the way"

"Oh my God!!" Rory roared with laughter "This is golden! I wish I was recording this right now. The jiggling is the appeal Dad. When a girl walks and they just bounce around...a man just wants to bury his face in there."

"Not this man," Niall scoffs "Stop talking about boobs and get back to the reason you came in here in the first place."

"Right," Rory nodded, turning serious again "There's this guy on the team with me. You didn't meet him because he had a family thing on the day I had that party for my birthday. Anyway, I just kind of noticed he acts a bit shy and awkward around some of the lads, also, I totally saw him checking out Adam's arse one day. Then, some of the lads were talking about girls and he looked so uncomfortable. I don't know if he's gay or what but if he is, I want to help him. I want him to know he has someone to talk to. I can't just walk up to him and flat out ask him if he's gay though. That would probably scare him and maybe he'd never feel like he can trust me. So, I've been subtlety trying to sneak you and Harry into conversations"

"What do you mean?" Niall asks, confused.

"Like, I keep saying ' _my_ _dads_ ' this and ' _my_ _dads_ that' so he knows I have two dads. I keep stressing the word dads as much as I can so he knows I have gay parents and maybe then he'll feel comfortable talking to me someday."

A slow smile spread across Niall's face as he stared at his son in front of him "I'm so proud of you. Do you understand how proud I am of you? You care so much about people, even people you barely know. You amaze me everyday."

Rory ducked his head, a faint blush appearing on his cheeks "Daaaddddd"

"Whaaaatttt?" Niall laughed "It's the truth."

"Can we get back to the conversation please? I don't know what to do!" Rory said, frustration evident in his voice.

"You're already doing it. Just be his friend. Whether he's gay or has something else going on, he'll eventually see he can trust you. That's all you can do. Making sure he knows you have gay parents was smart. He'll know you're not homophobic and maybe that will encourage him to open up to you." Niall said.

"Okay," Rory signed "I know you're right, it's just frustrating because there's nothing wrong with being gay. I wish everyone in the world would understand that."

"Me too, buddy" Niall smiled sadly "There will always be bigoted people in this world. It's up to us to decide if we're going to let them get the best of us."

"I know," Rory sighed and moved so he was laying on the bed next to Niall "What are you doing? Waiting for Harry to call?"

"I am, yeah. He has some free time this afternoon so I said I'd stay up to talk to him" Niall said.

"Can I stay? Or is this a Skype sex date? Because if you answer the call and he's...in a compromising position shall we say, I don't want to be here. I do not need to see that!"

Niall wanted to be indignant but he ended up laughing loudly instead "You know what the sad thing is? I can't even say he won't do that because he has done it before"

"Okay, that's my cue to leave!" Rory started to get up off the bed, a laughing Niall pulling him back down.

"Don't go. I'll text him to tell him to make sure he has his clothes on" Niall said, picking up his phone and opening up the text messages from Harry "He'll pout if he doesn't get to see you. He misses you a lot. He misses all of us a lot"

"I miss him too," Rory smiled "It's not the same around here without hearing him singing random songs while he's cooking or cleaning, or his dorkiness. He's such a dork sometimes. You're so lucky to have him. I'm so lucky to have him. I can't imagine my life without him."

"Neither can I. I'd be lost without him. He means the world to me. So do you and Finn." Niall said, a fond look on his face. His phone dinged with a text from Harry saying he was calling him on Skype now, so Niall grabbed his I-pad and held it on his lap while he waited for the call to come through.

It only took thirty seconds, then Niall was answering the call, smiling wide at his gorgeous husband.

"There they are!" Harry said excitedly "My very handsome husband and our cockblock son"

"Oi!" Rory yelled loudly as Niall broke out into loud laughter, Harry joining in.

"Seriously Rory? How did you think I was going to call Niall in the middle of the afternoon here?"

"Do you really want me to answer that?" Rory asked with one eyebrow raised.

"No! No no, no need for that. Keep your dirty mind to yourself please." Niall said, shaking his head.

"How was your day?" Harry asked the both of them, still chuckling a bit.

"It was good, yeah. I came home from work today and your Mum was cooking up a storm and this one had Finn laughing so hard I was worried he'd forget to breathe at one point" Niall pointed at Rory, a smile on his face.

"I can't help it! Is there anything better than baby giggles? I mean come on!"

"That's true. I got up at five this morning to go for a run then I came back and Skyped Mum. Finn was happily playing with his toys on the floor. Mum said he didn't have any issues with his teeth today. Was he still okay when you put him to bed?" Harry asked.

"He was fine darlin'. I think that tooth has come in fully now but we'll have to go through it all again when the next one pops through."

"My poor baby," Harry pouted "We'll have to keep making him as comfortable as possible and keep him distracted."

"That's what big brothers are for! I'll keep him busy." Rory grinned.

"I know you will. You're a great big brother to him. I knew you would be," Harry smiled softly "How are you doing? Did you have training today?"

"I did, yeah. It was good. Hard work but I knew it would be, that's why I always kept running and working out. I wanted to be prepared."

"I'm really proud of you. I can't wait until the day I get to see you play for Arsenal. I mean, I probably won't see much because I'll be crying the whole time but I'll still be there anyway." Harry laughed.

"I know you will. Thank you for saying that. It means a lot." Rory smiled shyly.

"Of course. I love you, you're my son, I wouldn't be anywhere else. God himself wouldn't be able to keep me from your first match." Harry said.

"You're crazy," Rory laughed "But I love you anyway. I'm going to bed now. Have fun with the show"

"I am! Goodnight love," Harry waved at the camera then waited for a minute while Niall said goodnight. Once Rory was gone, Niall cuddled up under the duvet with his I-pad in front of his face.

"Hey darlin'." Niall smiled softly "Miss you"

"I miss you too, baby. I hate sleeping without you." Harry pouted.

"Won't be long now. You'll be home soon. How's the show going?" Niall asked.

"It's amazing. Gwen has this one guy on her team I really connected with. He's twenty seven, so close to my age, and he was bullied in school for not only being gay but for being overweight. He's been through so much but he's come through it and he's happy now but he still puts everything he has into every song, the hurt, the anger, the sadness. If he doesn't win this show, I told him he needs to sign with Simon. He's too good not to be heard." Harry gushes.

"I can't wait to hear him," Niall smiles fondly at his husbands enthusiasm "Who knows? Maybe someday you'll end up working with him."

"I hope so. I gave him my number anyway, so he can be in touch if he needs anything." Harry said.

Niall gasped loudly, a playful smile coming over his face "Gone four days and you're already giving your number out to other men. I don't think I like that."

"Oh shut up!" Harry rolls his eyes "As if there's any man in this world that could even come close to comparing to you. You're everything I could ever want or need."

"God you're such a sap," Niall can't help but grin at his husband.

"Yeah but you love it. I can see you blushing," Harry teased.

"No you can't," Niall huffed, turning his head to hide his face in his pillow.

"You're so adorable when you're all shy and blushing," Harry laughed "I love you so much"

"I love you, too," Niall smiled softly, one eye peeking out from where he had his face pressed into the pillow "I can't wait until you come home. I miss you like crazy."

"Me too, baby. Me too."

 

~~~

 

Three days later, one day before Harry is due to come home, Niall is woken up at four in the morning by his phone ringing on his bedside table. Picking it up quickly, he looks at the screen and when he sees Louis' name, his heart jumps up in his throat.

"Louis? Why are you calling me in the middle of the night?" Niall asked, trying to keep his voice even. Maybe it was nothing. Maybe Louis simply forgot about the time difference or maybe he's drunk and calling Niall to whine about something. It doesn't necessarily mean something bad has happened.

"Niall. I'm sorry mate, there's been an accident and-" Louis began talking but Niall immediately cut him off.

"What?" Niall whispered, panic starting to sink in. He felt frozen in the bed, numb and unable to move "Harry...where's Harry? What happened? Is he okay? Is my husband okay?"

"Mate please," Louis said in a pleading voice "I'm going to tell you everything but you need to let me talk, don't keep interrupting me okay?"

Niall felt like he could barely breathe as several different scenarios ran through his head of what could have happened to his husband. "Louis please, please, what happened?"

"First of all he's not dead or anything so stop thinking the worst. The live results show was this evening, it just ended about ninety minutes ago actually. Harry sang his song, the results were read, and then the show was over. Once they went off the air, contestants, their families, the coaches, the crew, everyone kind of moved around the stage area chatting and talking about the show. Adam had his wife and kids with him, they were running around with some others kids, having the time of their lives when- when a light overhead came loose. Harry saw it right away, he's the only one that did and Adam's four year old daughter was right there. She was right there Niall and Harry- he just ran and grabbed her, shielding her from it. He didn't have time to get out of the way though, the light crashed down and hit the back of his head" Louis told Niall everything, desperately trying to hold back his tears "It knocked him out. The ambulance came and I rode with him to the hospital. He's with the Doctors now. So far he hasn't woken up but it's only been an hour so they said that's no cause for concern. That's all I know so far. I just-I needed to call you as soon as I could because I remember when you had your appendix out, the way Harry got so angry when we didn't tell him right away you went to the hospital. I knew you'd want to know, even if I have nothing to tell you yet."

"Oh God," Niall choked back tears "I'm coming. I don't care if he wakes up in five minutes, I'm coming there no matter what. I have to be with him, I have to see him, I-I-"

"I know, mate, I know. Harry's PA is with me. She's arranging everything. She's booking a private plane so there's no waiting on commercial flights and having to be on a plane surrounded by other people.Ill send you all the instructions on where to go as soon as its finalized. Everything will be taken care of. You just need to get your passport." Louis said.

"Yeah okay, okay," Niall nodded his head frantically to himself while climbing out of bed and hauling some clothes from the drawers. He pulled a pair of jeans on over his boxers then struggled to put his t-shirt on while still holding onto his phone. He decided to drop it on the bed and put it on speak phone so he could get dressed and still listen to Louis.

"Take a deep breath, Niall. We don't know anything yet. He could wake up in five minutes with a nasty headache and bump on his head along with a concussion. Don't get yourself worked up before we have all the facts. It won't do you or Harry any good." Louis said in a calm voice.

"I know, I know you're right. I just love him so much, Lou. I can't lose him. I can't go through that again. I can't lose another husband. It nearly killed me last time. I don't think I could do it again," Niall's voice broke as a few tears slipped from his eyes onto his cheeks.

"Hey now," Louis scoffed "Have you met Harry Styles? Do you really think a bump on the head is going to keep him from you? Because it won't. Harry is a kind, gentle soul but when it comes to his family he can be a tough son of a bitch. He would do anything for the three of you and God help the person who tries to stand in his way, so no, this bump to the head, no matter how bad it is, will not keep Harry from coming back to you. He'll fight. You know he will."

"It's Styles-Horan," Niall said softly, a small smile on his lips as he thought about everything Louis said and knew he was right about.

"What?" Louis asked, confused.

"It's Harry Styles-Horan. If he heard you just now he would have corrected you right away, with that pout on his face." Niall chuckled softly.

"You're right!" Louis barked out a laugh "He loves to remind everybody he's a married man now and proud to have his husbands name."

"Yeah. He's definitely something else," Niall grabbed a duffel bag and starts throwing socks, boxers, some jeans and t-shirts and his phone charger inside. He throws his deodorant in there after quickly putting some on, then takes off downstairs to his office to grab his passport out of the safe. Once he does that he realizes he has to wake up Anne and figure out what to do with Finn "Louis I have to go tell Anne what's going on and see if she can stay with Finn"

"Okay. I'll text you your flight info soon. Keep your head up and stay strong. If I learn anything else I'll call you right away." Louis promises "I love you. You're one of my best mates ya know"

"I know. I love you too, Lou" Niall said, trying to hold back another wave of tears. They said their goodbyes, then Niall put his phone in the back pocket of his jeans, left his bag by the door and quietly went upstairs to wake Anne.

When he got to her bedroom, he knocked quietly, not wanting to wake Rory down the hall. When she didn't answer, he knocked again, hoping she'd hear it this time and wake up. It took a minute but eventually the door opened and Anne stood staring at him with squinty eyes while tying her robe around her. She must have seen something in Niall's face because she quickly became alert and stepped back inside the room, closing the door behind her.

After they both sat on the bed, Niall told Harry's Mum what happened as calmly as he could, admiring his Mother-in-Law's ability to take everything in in a calm manner without panicking and freaking out. Once he was done, she nodded and with a look of resolve on her face, stood up and clapped her hands together, springing into action.

"Alright. I'll stay here with Finn. He'll be well taken care of so don't worry about that. You just get to LA with my son. This may be just a bad concussion and he'll be fine in no time. If it's more serious, and I'm praying to God it isn't, but if it is, call me right away. He's my son and I need to be there if something serious is going on"

"Of course. You'll know everything just as soon as I do," Niall promised, taking one of her hands in his and squeezing.

"Now, what will you do about Rory?" Anne asked, her expression clearly showing her concern for her eldest grandson.

"Fuck," Niall cursed, not bothering to sensor himself in front of his Mother-in-Law "I forgot about Rory."

"Niall Horan, don't you dare tell me you were going to leave this house for America without speaking to that boy? You can't just take off without telling him, regardless if I'm here or not." Anne says with a stern look on her face.

"Of course I wouldn't do that. My head has just been spinning ever since Louis called me and I'm worried about Harry. I wasn't thinking straight" Niall wiped a hand over his face.

"Well you better go talk to him right now, love, before Louis texts to say your plane is ready. I'll check on Finn and put some water on for tea. You can take it with you if you have to." Anne said.

"Thank you," Niall says quietly "I don't think I could eat right now but tea sounds good. I'll be down after I speak to Rory."

Anne nodded and followed Niall out of the room. She headed for the stairs to go check on Finn upstairs while Niall headed down the hall to Rory's bedroom. Rory never closed his door completely so Niall pushed it the rest of the way open and turned on the lamp on his desk, not wanting to startle and blind Rory with the bright overhead light.

"Rory?" Niall ran his hand up and down his sons arm a few times, trying to wake the boy without scaring him "Come on love, I need you to wake up for me."

Rory groaned and rolled over onto his back, allowing Niall to see his face. His eyes blinked open slowly and he looked up at Niall with a confused expression "What? Is it morning already? Did my alarm not go off?"

"No love," Niall put a hand on Rory's arm to keep him from reaching over for his phone on the bedside table "You didn't miss your alarm. I need to talk to you about something."

"Talk to me about-" Rory cut himself off "What time is it?"

"It's just after four in the morning. There was a bit of an accident on the set of 'The Voice' and Harry was hit by a stage light that got loose somehow." Niall tells his son as gently as he can, wanting to make sure he's understanding and processing everything.

"What?" Rory immediately paled and his eyes opened wider. He was definitely fully awake now and had his full attention on Niall "How does that even happen? Is he okay? Did he call you?"

"Louis just called me a few minutes ago. It only happened about an hour and a half ago so I don't know a whole lot. The light hit him in the back of the head and he was knocked unconscious. The ambulance came and Louis rode with him to the hospital and the Doctors were with him when Louis called me. He hasn't woken up yet but Louis said the Doctor told him there's no reason to be concerned just yet, he hasn't been unconscious long enough." Niall explained.

"Oh my God'" Rory sounded shocked "Are you going to LA? Oh God what am I saying? Of course you're going! I'm coming with you. I just need to get dressed. I don't need to pack anything, I can buy clothes when I get there. We need to-"

"Rory slow down!" Niall grabbed on to his sons arm as he was jumping out of his bed to get dressed "We don't know what's happening. He could wake up any minute and be fine. You can't just take off and miss training and your matches, not when this might be nothing serious."

"Are you kidding me right now?" Rory stared at his father in shock "I hope it is nothing serious but what if it is? I'm not going to just sit around at home waiting to find out what's happening."

"Rory..."

"No! Stop it! Seriously, fuck training and fuck football. My Father could be seriously injured in another country. I don't give a shit about football right now. I give a shit about my Dad and would gladly never play football again as long as he's okay. You're not going without me. You're just not." Rory started to sound angry, his cheeks turning red as all the colour came back into his face.

"Okay." Niall said quietly, not wanting to upset his son anymore. "You can go. I'm waiting for Louis to text me info on our plane so you have time to get dressed and throw some clothes in a bag. I'll be downstairs with your grandmother."

Rory nodded his head a few times in understanding then Niall hugged him tight and kissed his cheek, having to pull his son down a few inches now that he's had a growth spurt and is taller than him. He quietly the room and went downstairs to wait for Rory, sitting in the kitchen not saying a word as he listened to his Mother-in-Law putter around.

"I'm ready," Rory walked into the room ten minutes later, his backpack slung over his shoulder "Can you get my passport from the safe?"

"I'll do that right now," Niall said, sliding off his stool at the breakfast bar and heading for his office. While he was in there, a text came in from Louis, making Niall speed up what he was doing. The sooner they got to the airfield, the sooner theyd get to Harry.

"Louis just texted me. We're good to go," Niall said to Rory as he walked back into the kitchen.

"Alright my loves." Anne pulled them both into a hug "Stay positive okay? We really don't know anything yet. Harry may be just fine. I know it's hard but try not to worry too much. Keep me updated okay? I love you both so much"

"I love you, too, Granny," Rory said, holding on tight to his grandmother.

"I love you," Niall kissed his Mother-in-Laws cheek "I'll be in touch constantly. Kiss Finn for me when he wakes up"

Anne promised she would then handed them both travel mugs with tea in them. She saw them to the door and watched as they got into Niall's car and started out of the driveway for the airport. Once they were gone, she let out a long breath and took her cup of tea into the living room to curl up in the couch, hoping and praying her son and his family would be alright.

 

~~~

 

They had about a thirty minute drive or so, but with less traffic in the middle of the night, they were able to make it to Luton Airport in good time. Niall may have been speeding the whole time but nobody but Rory needs to know that.

They left the car in the parking area and after giving his name, Niall and Rory were quickly led to a small area where they were screened like they would be in any other airport, then an airport employee led them outside where their private plane was waiting for them. The air hostess met them on the Tarmac at the bottom of the planes stairs and when they got inside, the Captain was there to greet them and shake hands, asking if they needed anything before heading into the cockpit to finish all the pre-flight checks.

Niall was used to this by now, what with flying private with Harry all the time. He usually felt like a pretentious twat but today he could care less. As long as this plane gets them to Harry he doesn't care how much it costs or how pretentious it looks.

"Mr.Horan? Mr. O'Brien? If I could direct your attention to the monitors for a moment I'll play the pre flight safety instructions while we taxi to our designated runway for departure." The Air Hostess, named Lisa, said to them, a warm smile on her face.

Niall looked over at Rory and saw his face scrunched up like he had just eaten something bad and when he raised an eyebrow at him, Rory mouthed "Mr. O'Brien?" and Niall had to hold back a snort because yeah, he doesn't like being called Mr. Horan much and he's in his thirties so he can understand why Rory has his face screwed up.

"Call us Niall and Rory please," Niall said to Lisa, a polite smile on his face. She nodded then walked back to the front of the plane where she pressed some buttons and the entertainment system came to life. The video started playing but Niall didn't pay much attention. He's flown enough times that he knows what to do in the event of an emergency.

Once the video was finished, Lisa made sure they both were wearing their seat belts then walked back to the front of the plane to take her seat for take off.

It was a smooth take off and a smooth flight so far, nothing much really happening until four hours in when Niall was shaken from his daze by a broken sob. His head snapped up and he saw Rory sitting over on the couch with his legs pulled up to his chest, crying into his lap. Niall quickly got up from where he was sitting in one of four chairs that surrounded a table, and walked over to the couch to sit next to his son and pull him into his arms.

He didn't say anything for awhile. Rory was too upset and sobbing too much to listen to anything Niall had to say. All he could do was hold him, kiss him, and tell him to let it all out. All he could do was try to comfort him while keeping his own tears at bay. He was terrified of what could possibly be wrong with his husband but he didn't want Rory to see that. No matter how grown up he is, he's still seventeen, still technically a child, and it was Niall's job as his parent to take care of him. He couldn't do that if he was falling apart himself. It was hard, it was extremely hard. He wanted to cry and kick and scream, he wanted the flashbacks from over ten years ago when he found out Aiden had been in an accident to go away, he wanted the feeling that he was about to lose someone else he loves to go away.

"Rory? Can you talk to me, love?" Niall asked as soon as Rory's cries calmed down to just sniffles. His eyes were red and swollen, his cheeks were splotchy and wet from his tears and his nose was stuffed up. Niall handed him some napkins then sat back and waited while his son wiped his face and blew his nose.

"I can't-I can't d-do this again," Rory's chest heaved as he struggled to breathe evenly and not start sobbing again "I-I already lost my mother. I-I can't lose my Dad too."

"Don't think like that, love. Don't think the worst," Niall said, pulling his son back into a hug and letting him rest his head on his shoulder. He wondered if his son could tell how badly he was shaking, if he could feel how scared he was? He didn't want Rory to be anymore scared than he already was but the love of his life could be dying for all he knew, and Niall didn't really know how to be okay. So he took a deep breath and did the best he could. "We can't let ourselves go there. Right now he's hit his head and is having tests at the hospital. That's it. We don't know anything else yet so we can't let ourselves start making stuff up and playing out the worst case scenarios in our heads. We just need to be as strong as we can be and take it one step at a time."

"I don't know if I can be strong," Rory whispered "I'm so scared."

Niall's eyes filled with tears as he listened to his heart broken son. Harry meant so much to him. They loved each other so much, it made Niall ache sometimes with how beautiful it was. Their bond was incredible. Niall had never seen something so strong between a child and a step parent. He certainly didn't have that type of relationship with his own step father. He liked him and they got along great but they weren't close like Harry and Rory were. Sometimes Niall felt like he should be jealous but he wasn't. He had his own bond with Rory and the bond Harry had with him only made him love the both of them even more.

"He's my Dad. He-he accepted me as soon as you found out about me. You were newlyweds not even married six months and then this fifteen year old son is thrust upon you and he didn't even blink. He accepted it and-and loved me from day one. He's been there for me through everything. You both have. It's just different with him because you're my biological Dad and we already have that connection. You'll love me no matter what. I don't have that with him. He had no obligation to me at all but it didn't matter to him. It doesn't matter to him. I'm his son. He's my Dad. Simple as that." Rory sniffed, his voice beginning to break again on some words.

"That's Harry," Niall somehow managed to laugh through his tears "He has the biggest heart. Everyday I wake up and thank God he loves me as much as I love him. I'm so lucky and I never lose sight of that. He makes everything so much better doesn't he? Those damn dimples alone can make me smile when I'm in a strop about something."

"Yeah," Rory laughed, raising his arm to wipe his eyes in the sleeve of his shirt "I was trying to be mad at him over something- I can't remember what now- and I must have been acting like a complete tool because he just starts laughing at me and then no matter how much I tried not to laugh, I couldn't. I just couldn't. It's crazy!"

"Welcome to the club. He makes me laugh and smile everyday. Whether I want to or not." Niall chuckled quietly.

"It's because he's a dork and I love him so much. Did he tell you what we're doing? We've started reading the same books. Then whoever is finished first, waits for the other one to finish before starting another book. That way we can talk about it together. Like a two person book club." Rory said.

"He did tell me. He's been so excited about it. He sits up in bed at night, reading for hours sometimes. I fall asleep and I'll wake up at two in the morning and he's still reading. He loves doing that with you. He loves being your Dad. He loves you just as much as I do. Blood doesn't matter. You are his son and he will fight to the death for you if he had to. He would do anything for you. He would do anything for me. That's how I know he's fighting with all he's got to be okay." Niall said, nodding his head firmly.

"I'm trying so hard to keep telling myself that. To stay positive. I just can't lose him, Dad. I can't." Rory says with an air of desperation in his voice.

"And we won't. We're going to be strong and think positive for him, okay? He'll be okay. He has to be." Niall says, trying to reassure himself as much as he's trying to reassure Rory.

They lapse into silence then, just sitting there hugging each other until the phone on the plane rings and Niall scrambles to answer it.

"It's me," Louis' voice filters through the phone "Harry woke up briefly but they won't tell me anything. I'm not a family member. For fucks sake! I may as well be his brother but they won't tell me anything except that he's stable and he woke up for a short time."

"What? Is he still awake? Is he in a coma? Is he just sleeping? What?" Niall asks frantically.

"I don't know. They just said he's stable and they'll explain everything to you as soon as you get here. God. I should have lied and said I was his fucking husband. This is ridiculous!" Louis' voice was raised and he sounded like he was two seconds from having a tantrum right in the middle of the Emergency Room.

"Well can't the Doctor tell me over the phone?" Niall asked, frustrated.

"No. It's against fucking policy! I said well what the fuck am I supposed to tell his husband who's on a plane coming from fucking England?" Louis scoffed "At least he looked like he felt bad, like he wanted to tell me. He said to tell you Harry is stable and he'll explain everything to you when you get here. He just- I think everything is okay. At least for the time being. He kept emphasizing that Harry was stable so..."

"Okay," Niall nodded his head and blew out a long breath "That's at least good then."

"Yeah. I'm not leaving this hospital though. I refuse. I'm sending a car to meet you at the airport and the driver will bring you straight here." Louis said.

"Thanks Lou. I think it's about four and a half hours until we touch down. I'll see you soon."

"Stay strong. I'll see you soon," Louis said, then they both hung up and Niall explained everything to Rory.

The rest of the flight was completely silent. Niall and Rory stayed huddled together and Rory even managed to doze off for awhile. When they finally touched down in LA, they were escorted off the plane to a small private area where customs officers quickly scanned their passports and deemed them acceptable to enter the country. Afterwards, they were led outside where Niall quickly spotted a car and driver and walked over to introduce himself. Their bags were put in the trunk then the driver started the drive to The UCLA Medical Centre where Harry was admitted.

On the plane, Niall had done some research on the hospital and found out its ranked the third best hospital in the country and had a very good reputation. It eased Niall's mind a bit to know his husband was in the hands of some of the best Doctors in the world. He could only hope it was enough.

He's not sure how long the drive to the hospital was, he just knows the constant stopping and starting for red lights and congested traffic was frustrating him to no end. He just needed to get to Harry. He needed to touch him, kiss him, hold his hand and let him know he's there, that's he's not alone. The thought of his husband waking up alone and being scared made him sick to his stomach. He thought more than once that he'd have to open the car door to vomit onto the pavement.

He somehow kept it together though, and when they pulled up to the entrance of the ER, Niall bolted out of the car with Rory right behind him, not bothering to give the driver time to open the door for him, not bothering to find out where their bags would end up. None of that mattered. He figured Louis probably took care of all of that anyway.

Charging in through the sliding doors, the smell of hospital immediately makes his stomach roll. He reached behind him and grabbed Rory's hand, knowing the last time Rory was in a hospital his Mother had died. The smell was just the same and he hoped to God he could somehow comfort his son and keep the bad memories at bay.

The admittance desk was straight ahead and after explaining to the Nurse who he was and showing his ID, she looked something up on her computer and promptly buzzed him through, giving him directions on which way to go. He thanked her then took off speed walking down the halls until he rounded a corner and saw Louis pacing back and forth. He called out to him and watched as his head snapped up and he spotted Niall and Rory.

"I'm so glad to see you guys," Louis said when he ran up to them and wrapped his arms around them both at the same time "Fucking Americans, always worried about getting sued. They won't tell me a damn thing."

"I'm pretty sure the laws are probably the same in England, Lou," Niall said, a tiny smile on his lips at his best mates antics.

"No Niall. It's the Americans. They're all unreasonable. They sue each other for fun and now everyone is afraid of a lawsuit," Louis said haughtily, making Niall roll his eyes at him. He decided to forego pointing out to the older lad that his new girlfriend was one of those Americans.

"Where's Harry?" Niall asked "I want to see him"

Louis pointed behind Niall to where the Nurses station is "Let the Nurse know who you are. I'm pretty sure she's sick of me by now. The Doctor wanted to talk to you so she can probably page him for you."

Niall nodded and made his way to the desk, explaining who he was and showing his ID again. After typing a few things into her computer, she reached for the phone and called somebody, talking for a moment before she hung up and told Niall the Doctor would be right down to speak to him.

It took seven minutes. Seven long minutes of Niall and Louis both pacing while Rory sat stiff in a chair, trying to wait patiently to find out how Harry was doing. Seven minutes of Niall knowing his husband was here, so close to him in the same area and yet he hasn't been able to see or touch him yet.

Finally a Doctor who looked to be in his forties exited the elevator at the end of the hall and Niall watched as he went to the Nurses station and picked up a chart then turned toward them as soon as the Nurse pointed them out. He began to walk toward them, a warm, friendly smile on his face as he approached.

"Mr. Horan?" Niall nodded "I'm Dr. Roberts. I was the Neurosurgeon on call when your husband was brought in and he is currently still under my care."

The Doctor stuck out his hand to shake and Niall took it, his own hand shaking because did he just say Neurosurgeon? "Hello," Niall swallowed thickly and cleared his throat before he could speak again "I'm Harry's husband. This is our son Rory. I'm assuming you already know Louis?"

The Doctor shook Rory's hand and said hello then turned back to Niall and Louis "Yes, Mr. Tomlinson and I have met. I have to say, he had me really wanting to break hospital policy to talk to him about Harry. I almost did at one point. He just looked so miserable. He's clearly a good friend to you and your husband."

"He is," Niall nodded "I want him to be there when we talk."

"Absolutely. With your consent it's perfectly alright. If you could follow me...?" The Doctor motioned down a hallway and Niall, Louis and Rory immediately followed behind him.

They found themselves in an empty office, probably the office of an ER Doctor, Niall didn't know, nor did he care. Once the door was closed the Doctor leaned against the desk with his ankles crossed, Niall and Rory sat in the seats in front of him, and Louis stood up behind them.

"So..." The Doctor opened up the chart and glanced over it quickly before continuing "Your husband is still stable as of right now, which I'm very happy with. As I'm sure you're aware, he was struck in the back of the head by a stage light. Those lights are big and heavy so your husband has blunt force trauma to his head. After a CT and CAT scan, I was able to determine he was suffering from a depressed skull fracture. What that means is a part of the back of his skull has caved in."

"Oh my God," Niall whispered, his hand coming up to cover his mouth. Behind him, Louis was cursing up a storm while beside him Rory let out a choked sob "It's okay," Niall reached out for his son, pulling him against his side as best he could with the chair in the way. Behind them, Louis puts a hand on each of their shoulders, squeezing gently, trying to give some comfort.

"Now I know that sounds bad but if you could bare with me for a moment, I'd like to explain why it isn't as bad as it sounds." The Doctor said, a patient and kind look on his face while he waited for Niall and Rory to compose themselves. Once Niall nodded to go ahead the Doctor continued "I wasn't there when the accident happened but Mr.Tomlinson was able to describe it to me and from that I was able to determine that Harry didn't get struck full on by the light. He was moving as he pushed the little girl out of the way so as the light came down it probably didn't strike him at full force. It just barely got him as he was moving away. So even though it sounds horrible when I say part of his skull caved in, it actually could have been much worse. If hit full on, the skull may have been driven into the brain causing major swelling. As it stands right now, the brain has been unaffected and your husband has full and proper brain function."

Niall gasped "What does that mean?"

"It means your husband isn't out of the woods yet. He will need surgery to repair his skull but essentially it's mostly cosmetic. Repairing the bone. There was no damage to the brain and as long as we do the surgery soon, there won't be. We've been doing regular CT scans to monitor him closely and there continues to be no swelling. So with your consent, I'd like to get this surgery underway as soon as possible so we can keep it that way." The Doctor said with a smile.

"So-so he could come out of this perfectly fine? Go back to normal and live a normal life?" Niall asked hopefully.

"Yes. Absolutely. Of course every surgery has its risks, Neurosurgery especially, but this is a straight forward procedure I've done many times. There's no reason to expect this surgery won't go smoothly." The Doctor said.

"Oh my God," Niall said again "Can I see him first? Louis said he woke up. Is he still conscious?"

"He is. He was out for less than two hours before he woke up. He's on some heavy duty pain medications right now, so he's mostly been drifting in and out. He was a bit disoriented for awhile but that's normal. I've been checking in on him every couple of hours and after a couple hours, when I went in the second time after he woke up, he was more lucid. He understood where he was and that he had been hit on the head. He had a few words to say, too, and I think you'll enjoy them. He said 'Did someone call Niall? He's probably freaking out. I don't want him to freak out. Maybe he should have some of whatever you gave me.' Then he fell off to sleep again." The Doctor chuckled.

Louis and Rory both burst into loud laughter while Niall half laughed, half sobbed, his hands covering his face. "Yes please. Whatever you gave him would be brilliant right about now."

"Well if you want to see your husband, I don't think that's a good idea. You'd be knocked out before you got to his room," The Doctor said, laughing.

"Can I see him now? I mean, I'm sure there's a lot more to talk about and I probably have a ton more questions but all I can think about right now is seeing him." Niall asked anxiously.

"Um if it's okay with you, Niall, I could maybe ask the Doctor some questions while you see Harry? We'd probably ask the same things anyway. Then I can tell you everything once Harry is in surgery." Louis suggested.

"As long as Mr. Horan gives his consent, that would be fine with me," The Doctor smiled at Louis.

"Yes. Yes. Of course. You have my consent for everything. Do I need to sign something for the surgery," Niall asked.

"Yes, I'll get everything together and have you sign it after you've seen your husband. I plan to start surgery in an hour. You can stay with him until it's time to prep him but please don't overwhelm him. Normally I'd only let one in at a time but I don't expect your son to wait outside while you're visiting your husband, so you can go in together as long as you're calm."

"Absolutely. We won't disturb him or upset him." Niall promised, Rory nodding his agreement.

"Okay then! I'll have a Nurse come show you to his room while I stay here and answer some of Mr. Tomlinson's questions," The Doctor said, turning around to pick up the phone and making a quick call.

Two minutes later a Nurse knocked on the door and Niall and Rory hugged Louis quickly, before following her out of the room. She led them down a few hallways until she stopped at a door and opened it up. She went inside, motioning for them to follow her and after checking over the machines and IV, she turned and smiled at them, telling them to take all the time they needed before she left.

Niall stood frozen as he looked at his husband in the hospital. He didn't know what he was expecting but aside from the bandages wrapped around his head, he looked the same. A bit pale but otherwise he simply looked like he could be asleep in their bed at home.

Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, he finally walked over to the bed, pulling a chair over to sit down in. Rory did the same, pulling up a chair right next to Niall.

"Hi darlin'" Niall said quietly, picking Harry's hand up in both of his own and kissing the back of it a few times. "I'm here. Rory is too. Everything is going to be fine. Just fine."

Niall couldn't help it then. Relief at finally seeing his husband, knowing he had a good chance to pull through and seeing that he looked the same, unleashed something in him and his shoulders started shaking and the tears came pouring out, down his cheeks and onto Harry's hand. He wanted to stop, he just couldn't. The tears just kept coming and the sobs kept coming, until Rory shook him gently and called his name to try and get his attention. Niall lifted his head from where he was resting it on the bed and looked at Rory next to him, a silent question in his eyes. Rory simply smiled and pointed toward Harry, making Niall whip his head around to find Harry's green eyes staring right at him.

"Don't cry baby. Please? Hate it when you cry," Harry's voice was hoarse and barely above a whisper but it was his and Niall could hear him loud and clear.

Niall squeezed Harry's hand while laughing and wiping at his face with his other hand. "Hi darlin'. How are you feeling?"

Harry frowned, keeping his gaze on Niall "I'd feel better if you weren't so sad."

Niall laughed again and half stood up from his chair to kiss Harry's forehead "I'm not sad anymore. I'm just really happy to see you. I missed you, I missed those eyes."

Harry hummed, closing his eyes for a moment and wetting his lips with his tongue "Missed you too. I missed your lips quite a bit." Harry puckered his lips, indicating he wanted Niall to kiss him. He obliged immediately, pressing his lips to Harry's chapped ones in a soft and tender kiss, holding it for a moment before pulling back and smiling at his husband.

"That's better," Harry grinned, his dimples popping.

"There's those dimples I love so much," Niall leaned over the bed and kissed one of those dimples, not being able to help himself.

"Well," Harry giggled quietly "I have been told these dimples get me whatever I want."

"Oh my God," Rory snorted "He's so high!"

Upon hearing Rory's voice, Harry's eyes went wide and bright, like a kid on Christmas Day "My boy!! Our boy is here, Niall. Come here, come here." Harry lifted his empty hand off the bed, waving it around to say he wanted Rory to come closer.

Niall stood up so Rory could take his spot and he didn't waste any time throwing his body over Harry's and hugging him tight "Thank God you're okay! I was so scared, Dad. I thought I was going to lose you!"

Harry brought his arms up around Rory's body, hugging him as best he could with the little strength he had. He kissed the side of his head and murmured comforting words and sounds in his ear. Meanwhile, he's looking at Niall with wide eyes that were quickly filling up with tears. Niall knew why, of course. Rory had just called Harry Dad, something he's never done before.

"I love you so much, Dad," Rory sobbed against Harry's chest.

"Hey," Harry spoke softly, his voice still hoarse and weak. He gently tapped Rory's back to get him to sit up and as soon as he did, Harry covered both of his cheeks with his hands, wiping his sons tears away "Hey, hey, hey. It's okay, love. I'm here. I'm okay. I love you too much to leave you, yeah? You and your Dad and your brother. I'm not going anywhere."

Rory nodded his head, trying his best to smile through his tears "You better not. We have too much to do. Footie matches I want you to see me play, our tennis games we always play, all the books we have to read together."

"I'm there for all of it," Harry smiled and kissed his sons cheek tenderly "Wouldn't miss it. You're my boy. Love you."

"You're both my boys," Niall smiled fondly at the two of them. He sat down in Rory's chair and held his hand out for Harry, Harry taking it and linking their fingers together while Rory stayed sitting on the bed leaning against Harry's shoulder. "Do you remember what happened, darlin?"

"No. Last thing I remember was finishing my song. I don't remember the results being read or talking to anybody after the show went off the air. I don't remember anything until I woke up here," Harry said quietly, his fingers gently running through Rory's hair "My-my Doctor...he gave me a bit of a run down. Um did you talk to him yet?" Niall nodded his head "Okay well, yeah, you know I'm going to have surgery."

"Yes," Niall swallowed thickly, determined to keep any more tears from falling until Harry was in surgery and couldn't see him "Your Doctor is very optimistic though. Says that brain of yours is just fine. He's just gotta fix that hard head of yours."

"Yeah," Harry smiled at Niall "Not sure my brain is 'just fine'. There's no tests that can detect what really goes on in this head of mine."

"Oh God," Niall rolled his eyes "You're terrible"

"You love me."

"Yeah. I do. So much," Niall said, his hands beginning to shake slightly, getting Harry's attention.

"Hey Rory?" Harry addressed his son "Would you mind finding Louis for me? I want to see him before surgery."

"Sure," Rory stood up and kissed Harry's cheek before leaving the room.

"Niall look at me," Harry said in a firm voice. Clearly the pain meds were wearing off a bit since Harry was less giggly and more coherent. He took both of Niall's hands in his and brought them to his lips, kissing them softly "I'm fine baby. I'm right here. I need you to calm down for me a bit, love. I need you to stay strong for our son for just a bit longer then once I'm done surgery I can take over and I'll be strong enough for all three of us."

"Don't be ridiculous," Niall scoffed "You're going to rest after surgery and let me and the Doctors take care of you or I'll tie you to the damn bed."

A huge grin slowly spread across Harry's face and Niall immediately barked out an incredulous laugh as he realized why "Harry Styles-Horan, only you could possibly be thinking about sex when your head is bashed in."

Harry shrugged his shoulders and smiled at Niall coyly "Can't help it. I've got a hot husband."

Niall chuckled and dipped his head shyly "Harry..."

"It's true," Harry did his own chuckling then the room grew silent except for the machines once Harry's chuckles tapered off "Hey..."

Niall took a deep breath and let it out slowly before lifting his head to make eye contact with his husband "H...I was so scared. Don't you dare do this to me ever again. I can't lose you. I can't live without you. You're the love of my life. I just can't..."

"I know," Harry gripped Niall's hand tightly "I'm so sorry, baby. I hate knowing how scared you must have been on the long flight here. You and Rory both. I'm so sorry."

"I know," Niall nodded quickly, wiping a hand under his nose "It's not your fault. It's not like you did it on purpose. I don't even want to think about it anymore. You're here and you're talking to me, that's all that matters."

At that moment, Louis walked in and Niall stepped out for a moment to gather himself and give the two best mates a few moments alone. When he saw the Doctor walking down the hall, he took and deep breath and nodded as the Doctor approached. He had with him the consent forms for surgery and he went over them carefully with Niall to make sure he understood everything before he signed.

"Alright. I'm going upstairs to prep for the surgery. It'll take a few hours because we have to move slow. We have to lift the part of the skull that caved in, back out and we want to do it as slowly as possible so we make sure the brain isn't affected at all. Once the orderlies comes to bring Harry to the OR, I'll have a nurse bring you to the surgical waiting area. As soon as I'm done, you're the first person I'll be looking for okay?"

"Yes. Okay. Thank you Doctor. Please just take care of him. I don't care what it takes, just bring him back to us." Niall pleaded.

"You have my word I'll do everything within my power in that OR Mr. Horan. I'll see you after the surgery." The Doctor smiled at Niall and shook his hand before turning around and heading for the elevator.

Niall went back into Harry's room and found Louis with his phone on speaker and Anne's voice filling the room. He was going to ask his husband if he wanted to call and let her know he's okay before his surgery but it looks like he thought of that all on his own.

Soon, the orderlies came in and Anne said goodbye, Niall promising to call her back shortly to go into more detail on what was going on. Next, Louis and Rory both hugged Harry and told him they loved him and then there was only Niall left. The orderlies and a nurse stood off to the side while Harry and Niall shared a long hug and kiss before finally having to let go of each other.

"I love you darlin'," Niall said, holding back his tears "I'll be right here as soon as you wake up. You just be strong and you fight okay? Come back to me."

"I love you too baby. I promise you I will always fight for you, for us, for our family. I'll see you soon, yeah?" Harry smiled at Niall, trying to reassure him "Love you."

"Love you," Niall whispered one last time before he watched them wheel his husband away.

As soon as he was out of sight, Niall knew he couldn't hold it together much longer. He made eye contact with Louis, the older lad seeming to understand immediately that Niall needed some time alone.

"Um I found out from the Nurse what floor we need to go to so why don't you guys go on ahead and I'll meet you up there? I just want to go outside for some fresh air for a minute." Niall managed to say, his voice sounding strangled.

Louis nodded his head and wrapped an arm around Rory to lead him toward the elevator "We'll wait for you upstairs mate. Take all the time you need."

Niall simply nodded then quickly made his way through the halls and out the doors into the hot LA sunshine. Even though it was November it was still warm but there was a light breeze that felt good on his cheeks as he started walking down the busy street with tears streaming down his face.

When he had walked for three blocks he came across a small kids playground that was empty considering it was quite early in the morning in LA. Most kids were only waking up now to get ready for school. He sat down on a rusty green bench and the minute he did, the gut wrenching sobs started. He leaned over with his face in his hands and his elbows pressed into his thighs, sobbing like he hadn't done since Aiden died. Now here he was again, with another husband he may lose. He was absolutely terrified the next time he saw Dr.Roberts he'd be telling him his husband is dead.

Somehow through his sobs he was able to let out a loud scream and once he did they just kept coming until his throat was raw and he had slid off the bench onto his knees. Then, he started talking.

"I don't know how this works," Niall said, his voice hoarse and raw, his nose stuffed up from crying "I don't know if there's a God or if there's a heaven. I-I don't know what happened when Finn was sick, if it was just a dream or if it was something else but Aiden if you're out there somewhere and you can hear me, please, _please_ help me. Please don't let God take Harry. Please look after him. Please don't let me go through this again. Please Aiden. Aiden-"

Niall broke down sobbing again, unable to keep talking. He had no idea what he was doing anyway. Maybe he was just going fucking crazy. All he knew was he needed Harry to be okay. If that meant bargaining with God or begging his dead husband then..

Hours passed before Niall was calm enough to go back to the hospital. He stopped in the washroom in the lobby, checking to see if his face was red and puffy. It was a little bit and he looked exhausted but he probably looked a hell of a lot better than he did an hour ago so he'd take it.

When he made his way to the correct floor and found the waiting area, Rory was slumped down in his chair fast asleep. Niall couldn't blame him. He was physically and emotionally exhausted and Niall was glad his son was getting some rest and reprieve from all the worry.

Louis was pacing back and forth, unable to stay still and when he saw Niall, he grabbed his arm and dragged him out of the room and all the way down to the end of the hall. "Where the fuck have you been? You were gone for three hours, Niall. I was worried sick and I couldn't come look for you! I couldn't just wake Rory up and tell him he's got one Dad in surgery and the other one has gone missing!"

"Louis-"

"What the fuck is wrong with you? Don't do this to me again," Louis started to cry, his hands slapping at Niall's arms and chest "Don't fucking do this to me again."

Louis broke down in sobs then, and Niall stood in complete shock watching him. He'd never seen Louis like this before. Never.

"Lou..." Niall finally wrapped his arms around his friend and hugged him tight. He realized that Louis probably hadn't really reacted yet to what happened to Harry. He was too busy arranging for Niall to get here and making sure he and Rory are okay. Now that Harry is in surgery and they have to play the waiting game, it must all be hitting him hard "Let it all out Lou. It's just you and me here, nobody else. Just let it all out."

And he did. He sobbed so hard his body shook in Niall's arms and Niall simply grabbed him tighter, repeatedly telling him it was okay while trying to fight back his own tears. Louis had been a rock for Niall, now it's Niall's turn to return the favour.

"I'm sorry," Louis pulled back, his chest heaving as he tried to gasp in air "I-I I'm sorry."

"No, I'm sorry Lou. You're hurting too. You're just as scared as I am and I haven't been there for you at all. You've been here by yourself, dealing with everything and then when Harry goes in for surgery, I leave you alone to look after my son while I take off for hours at a time. That's not okay and I'm so, so sorry." Niall said sincerely.

Louis simply nodded his head and wiped furiously at his cheeks, his chest still rapidly moving up and down as he caught his breath "It's okay. I-I understand. Yeah I'm scared but he's your husband and you two have this bond, this love that I can't even begin to understand or explain. This is much worse for you. I just lost it there for a bit"

"It's hard for both of us. Your pain isn't worth any less than mine. Let's just be there for each other from here on out, yeah?" Niall smiled at his friend.

"Of course, yeah. Um, before we go back in there, I figured you were really upset so I called Anne back and filled her in on everything. She said she's going to come here and bring Finn because once Harry is released from hospital, he won't be able to fly for a few weeks and she wants to be here to help you take care of Harry and she knows the both of you wont want to be without Finn for a full month. Also, he'll miss his daddies so I arranged everything. I didn't bother calling Harry's lawyer, I called Robin and he got the forms together right away so-"

"Forms for what?" Niall asked confused.

"Forms you have to sign to give Anne permission to bring your son out of the country. She's not his guardian. It would essentially be considered kidnapping if she tried to take him." Louis said.

"Jesus Christ. I never even thought of that." Niall wiped a hand over his face "So what needs to be done?"

"Robin e-mailed the forms to me. One of the wonderful administrating staff allowed me to print them in his office. You just need to sign them and I'll go back to his office to fax them right to your office in your house. Anne is booked on a direct to LA flight that leave in six hours. She's already making sure she packs everything Finn needs. It's good you and Harry already got him a passport. She can leave today and not have to wait." Louis said.

Niall shrugged "With Harry's job we knew Finn would be traveling at some point."

"Right," Louis nodded "Anyway, the forms are on the table in the waiting room. You can sign them now and I'll fax them right away."

Niall nodded and followed Louis back to the waiting room, immediately taking a pen from him and signing the papers.

"Also...you and Harry haven't been to LA since Finn was born so I'm assuming there's no nursery for him yet?" Louis asks.

"Shit!" Niall cursed "Our ten month old son will be here in sixteen hours more or less and he has nowhere to sleep!"

"Relax. It's okay. Harry's PA is at the house now. She has a credit card Harry gave her for stuff like this. She'll order everything and have it delivered then she'll personally supervise as they put it all together. Finn will have everything he needs by the time he gets here." Louis assured him.

"Jesus Christ," Niall stared wide eyed at Louis " I feel like I should be used to this after six years with Harry but I'm still in awe at how efficient you and his PA are. Like, I keep telling her she can't be human and she just laughs at me but she can't be, Louis, she just can't be."

"It's not that hard to make calls, Niall," Louis laughed "Money talks."

"Yeah and at times like this I'm really fucking glad Harry has a lot of it." Niall shook his head.

"You have a lot of it," Louis laughed.

"Yeah, I do okay but I haven't made tens of millions of pounds!" Niall scoffed.

"Not what I meant. I meant it's your money, not just Harry's. Everything he owns he refers to it as yours and his together. You know he does." Louis grinned "You're the only one besides Harry that has complete access to everything. You could go to the bank tomorrow and arrange to have a million dollars taken out if you wanted."

"Well I don't want!" Niall pouted, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I know you don't. It was one of the things about you I liked most when I met you. It didn't take long to see you were arse over tit for my best mate. You weren't after his money." Louis said.

"I don't need any money if I have him. That's all I need. It's all I'll ever need." Niall said quietly.

"Sap. The both of you are complete saps," Louis groaned "I'm going to go fax these," Louis held up the forms Niall just signed "I won't be long."

"Thank you, Louis. I mean that from the bottom of my heart. We couldn't get through this without you." Niall said sincerely.

Louis smiled warmly at his friend and reached out to squeeze his arm before turning and leaving the room.

  
~~~

  
Niall knew everything was going to be alright when Dr. Roberts walked into the waiting room after six hours of surgery with a smile on his face.

"Everything went exactly as it should have," He smiled warmly at Niall, Louis and Rory "He's being moved to the ICU right now, where we will be able to monitor him closely to make sure there are no complications. We'll be looking out for things like infection or brain swelling. I'm not expecting to encounter either but it's always best to be cautious."

"Can we see him?" Niall asked anxiously.

"Once he's settled in the ICU you can. He'll likely be very groggy and disoriented when he wakes up. He'll be receiving strong painkillers and some sedation. We just want him to rest for a few days so he might not wake up much and when he does, he'll be out of it. It's completely normal so don't worry. Only immediate family in the ICU I'm afraid. Sorry Mr. Tomlinson." The Doctor looks at Louis sympathetically.

"No it's fine," Louis smiled "He's okay. That's all I care about. Niall and Rory should be with him. Niall, I'm going to make some calls to let everyone know about Harry and I'll make sure Anne gets to the house alright. Thank you Doctor." Louis shakes the Doctors hand and hugs Niall and Rory before he leaves.

" A Nurse will come get you when Harry is settled. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to have me paged."

Niall thanks the Doctor profusely then he and Rory collapse down on the waiting room couch in relief, hugging and shedding a few tears in relief. Niall eventually gets up to go to the washroom and nearly runs into Adam Levine on his way out the door.

"Hi. You're- are you Niall Horan?" He asks in a quiet voice.

Niall stares at him with his mouth slightly agape and one eyebrow raised. Is the Narry phenomenon so big that even Adam Levine knows who he is? Christ! "Yes. I'm Niall Horan."

Adam's face crumples right in front of Niall, tears streaming down his face, completely horrifying him. He doesn't understand what's happening? Why the lead singer from Maroon 5 is standing in front of him crying? For a moment he's wondered if he's fallen asleep and dreaming it all.

"I'm so sorry to bother you. I was just wondering if there's any news on Harry? I can't- I can't get the image of him getting hit out of my head. He- he saved my daughters life. She's only four and if that light had hit her it would have crushed her. She wouldn't be here right now. He literally picked her up and shielded her with his body." Adam said, his voice shaking.

Niall's eyes grew wide as he remembered his conversation with Louis when Louis had called him to tell him about Harry's accident. He remembers how Louis told him "Adam" has brought his wife and kids to the show and Harry was pushing one of the kids out of the way when he got hit. In all his panic and worry about Harry, it never occurred to him that Louis was talking about Adam Levine.

"Sorry," Niall shook his head, snapping himself out of the daze he was in "I've been so worried and focused on Harry that I forgot- well I forgot the details of what happened."

"Yeah- no, of course. Of course you're focused on your husband before anything else." Adam said, nodding his head.

"Harry is okay. He just came out of surgery. It went well and he's expected to pull through." Niall smiled and reached out a hand to squeeze Adam's arm "It'll take some time but he'll be back to normal eventually."

"Thank God," Adam let out a long breath, his shoulders shaking as he cries in relief "Thank God."

Niall put an arm around him and led hi into the waiting room to sit down, a wide eyed Rory looking on "How's your daughter? Was she hurt at all?"

"No," Adam shakes his head like he can't believe what he's saying "Not a scratch. Harry completely covered her body with his. She doesn't fully comprehend what happened. Just knows the nice, fun man she saw at the studio got a boo boo while helping her. She doesn't understand the severity of it all. She keeps asking if 'the man' is okay, though. My wife and I are beside ourselves, worried sick about Harry but also so incredibly grateful for what he did. Our daughter wouldn't be alive if not for him. There's nothing in this world that's good enough for me to repay him. I'd do anything but nothing seems good enough."

"Your daughter being okay is thanks enough for Harry. In a few days, after he's rested and woken up, he'll want to know if she's okay. He'll probably want to see her," Niall chuckled "He'll be so happy she's okay. That's all that matters to Harry. He loves kids so much. We have two of our own."

"Rory and Finn, yeah." Adam nodded "He hasn't stopped talking about them since he got here a week ago. Of course I'm the same way about my kids so the two of us have been talking together non-stop. Blake keeps teasing us about it but we don't care."

"I'm not surprised. Our kids are Harry's favourite thing to talk about. This is our eldest son, Rory, by the way." Niall gestured to Rory who was sitting next to him.

"Yeah, I recognize him from the pictures on Harry's phone," Adam leaned over to shake Rory's hand "You're a soccer player and he can't stop talking about you. It helps that I like soccer so I actually know what he's talking about. Blake and Pharrell didn't have a clue."

"He talks about me a lot huh?" Rory blushes a bit.

"He does. He's really proud. Of you too, Niall. Seriously, the way he talks about you makes me want to marry you myself," Adam joked.

Niall let out a loud, booming laugh, shaking his head at his husband. He can only imagine the sappy shit Harry probably goes on with when Niall isn't around. If he's honest, though, the thought of Harry talking about him like that makes his whole body tingly and warm. He's never felt as loved, wanted and desirable as he does with Harry.

"He's a really great man," Adam turned serious again "I hope when he's feeling better, you'll be okay if we visit him for a minute? To tell him how grateful we are."

"Yes, that would be great. Harry would love it if you bring your daughter. He'll want to see for himself that she's okay," Niall said, reaching for his phone in his back pocket "Put your number in my phone. I'll call or text once Harry is out of the ICU and can have visitors who aren't family."

Adam took the phone and put his number in then texted himself so he'd have Niall's number. He left after that, telling Niall and Rory to call if they needed anything at all.

"Well," Rory said after Adam left "I guess Dad's a hero huh?"

"Yeah," Niall smiled fondly, his heart filling with love for his husband "He's something else."

  
~~~

  
Harry spent the next ten days in the hospital before he was cleared to be released. Everything was healing nicely, it was just the concussion symptoms left to deal with. Dizziness, nausea, vomiting, headaches, sensitivity to light, irritability, double vision, confusion, difficulty concentrating, and balance problems were some of the symptoms Harry could possibly have to deal with as a result of such a bad knock to the head. He was grateful to be alive though, so if he had to deal with those things he would. With his husband and family by his side to help him.

However, concussion symptoms weren't what was bothering Harry, five days after he had been released for the hospital and went to his LA house to recuperate. It was how exhausted his husband looked and the guilt was eating him alive.

"I'm sorry," Harry whispered on the fifth night he was home, as he watched Niall get undressed to get in to bed.

Niall threw his jeans and t-shirt in the clothes hamper and climbed under the duvet next to Harry, a confused looked on his face "Why?"

"You look exhausted, baby. You've been through so much because of me. You must have been terrified when Louis called you, then you had to spend ten hours on a plane to get here, sit through six hours of surgery, then you spent ten days by my side at the hospital all day while coming back here at night and being a great Dad to our kids. You're not really sleeping, I can tell so don't try and tell me you are. Now you're taking care of me while I recover. It's just- it's so much for one person to take and I'm just so sorry it's because of me." Harry said, tears in his eyes as he looked at his husbands tired face.

Niall didn't immediately react. He lay there on his side, looking at Harry like he was studying a painting. His expression giving nothing away. Eventually, he cupped Harry's cheeks in his hands and leaned in to kiss him, coaxing a needy whimper from him when his tongue started moving slowly against Harry's. It was hot and sensual and it would bring Harry to his knees if he were standing.

"I love you," Niall whispered, breathlessly, against Harry's lips.

"I love you, too." Harry whispered back, his forehead pressed against Niall's as he tried to catch his breath.

"I know you do. So do me a favour, yeah? Imagine the roles were reversed. Imagine everything that happened to you, happened to me. What would you do?" Niall asked.

"Touché." Harry couldn't help the small smile that formed on his lips. "I'd be doing everything you're doing."

"You would. I don't want to speak for you but I imagine it's for the same reasons as me. I love you and our wedding vows mean everything to me. When I said through sickness and in health, I meant it. When I said I would love, honour and cherish you, I meant it. I've never meant anything more. So please don't worry about me. I'm fine as long as you're fine." Niall said.

"I'll try," Harry promised, kissing Niall softly.

"Good. Let's go to sleep, yeah? Do you need anything? Did you take your medication?" Niall asked as he fluffed up their pillows.

"I'm fine and yes I took my medication. All I need right now is you." Harry said.

"Okay. Turn over on your side and let me cuddle you. I love you, darlin'. See you in the morning." Niall said.

Harry turned over and closed his eyes, sighing when Niall's strong arms wrapped around him and held him close "I love you, too. Goodnight."

  
~~~

  
The next day while Niall and Anne took Finn out for a walk, Rory sat next to Harry on Harry and Niall's bed, reading aloud from the book they were both reading when Harry had his accident. Harry couldn't read yet because focusing and concentrating on the words on the page only gave him a headache. Once they had gotten through a chapter, Harry tapped Rory in the leg to get his attention.

"Hey," Harry smiled at his son "Let's talk for a minute."

"Okay. What about?" Rory asked, crossing his ankles and putting the book on the table.

"Well...I just want to tell you I remember what you said before my surgery. You called me Dad and I just want you to know how much that means to me. It makes me really proud that you think of me as your Dad." Harry said "I'm proud of you. Full stop. I couldn't love you anymore than I already do."

"Oh," Rory said, his eyes wide and unblinking "Oh. Well I-I've thought of you as my Dad for awhile now. I just never called you that because I already call Dad that and it would be so confusing. I mean, I thought about Papa like Finn will call you but that sounds stupid when you're seventeen like I am and Daddy sounds way too kinky so there's no fucking way I'm calling you that."

"Hmm," Harry hummed, trying to keep a straight face "Niall already calls me that anyway."

Rory's eyes grew wide like saucers and he scrambled off the bed so fast he nearly fell over "Oh my God!!! Oh my _God_!! Why would you tell me that? Why????"

Harry was laughing hysterically by this point, bent over on the bed and wheezing he was laughing so hard "I'm-I'm kidding. Oh God I'm kidding!"

"You arsehole!" Rory screamed "I'm traumatized now! I'll never sleep again."

"What the hell is going on in here?" Niall ran into the room, a worried look on his face "Harry? Are you okay? What's wrong?"

"Is _he_ okay?" Rory scoffed "I'm the one who is traumatized for life here. He's just fine."

"Would somebody please tell me what's going on here? Harry you can't be exerting yourself like this! You're still recovering." Niall sits on the bed next to Harry and helps him sit up "What the fuck are you laughing at?"

"Oh God," Harry wiped the tears from his eyes "Rory was saying he doesn't call me Dad because it would be confusing. Then he said Papa sounds weird for a seventeen year old and daddy is too kinky. I told him you already call me that anyway."

Niall's mouth dropped open in shock at first but once he let it sink in and he saw the look on Rory's face, a booming laugh came out of him and he was right there with Harry, toppled over on the bed laughing uncontrollably.

"I hate both of you. I'm going to have to move out and- and get a lobotomy or something so I can forget I ever heard those words!" Rory complained, his hands on top of his head, fisted in his hair.

"You don't hate us. You love us," Harry giggled, lifting his hands up to wipe the fresh tears from his cheeks.

"Not anymore I don't! I don't need to know anything about your sex life! That's just wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong!" Rory scowled.

"Oh relax. I don't actually call him Daddy," Niall rolled his eyes at his son "If anything, Harry would be the one calling me that."

"NO!!! No, no, no. Stop talking right now. Stop! I can't listen to anymore. I'll be having nightmares until I'm sixty!" Rory screamed, covering his ears with his hands.

Harry and Niall fell into a fit of laughter again, only dying down when Harry winced and grabbed onto his head. Niall immediately turned serious and gently helped Harry lay back on the soft, fluffy pillows to relax "Alright darlin'?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine," Harry waved his hand dismissively "Apparently laughing really hard is not good for my head yet. It's my own fault anyway. I couldn't resist."

Rory huffed and crossed his arms over his chest, scowling and looking like a grumpy five year old. Harry thought it was the cutest thing in the world and couldn't resist holding his arm out and beckoning Rory to come sit with him.

"I'm sorry I traumatized you," Harry pulled Rory down beside him "On a serious note, I'm sure Finn won't be calling me Papa and Niall Daddy once he's a teenager. He'll call Niall Dad and me...well Pop is short for Papa isn't it? Sounds the same just without the a on the end. If you want, you can call me that but if you just want to keep calling me Harry, that's okay too. I love you just the same no matter what."

"Okay," Rory whispered "I like Pop. It'll be nice to call you what all my siblings will call you. You're having more kids right?"

"That's the plan!" Harry smiled happily. "Where's Finn by the way?"

"He fell asleep in his stroller so I put him down for a nap when we got home. Your son had an exhausting day. A bunch of Mum's had their older kids at the park and practically lunged in the stroller with Finn when they saw him. You should have seen him! The more they cooed at him, the more he'd smile and laugh and babble. A real ladies man that one!" Niall laughed. "Then some of them started eyeing me and I grabbed your Mum and we left. Seriously. Gross."

Rory rolled his eyes at his father "Yes Dad, we know. You don't like bouncy boobs. Got it."

"Good thing, too, since I don't have any." Harry quipped.

"God you're both so weird," Rory got up and rolled his eyes playfully "I'm going outside by the pool. It's nice, this LA weather."

"Hey, before you go, we wanted to talk to you about something. Might as well do it now." Niall spoke up before Rory could leave.

"Okay. That doesn't sound good," Rory said carefully.

"No, no, it's nothing bad. It's just- I'm doing better now, I'm out of the hospital and in three weeks I'll be able to make the flight home. In the meantime, while you're here with us, you're missing training and matches. You don't have to keep doing that. I'm okay now. You should get back to your team." Harry said gently.

"But I don't want to. My coach said I could take all the time I needed and rejoin the team when I'm ready."

"You're missing a lot right now Rory. This is your future, your career. Harry is fine. He's doing well after the surgery. There's no reason you need to be here doing nothing for the next three weeks when your team needs you." Niall said.

"I can't. No. I can't. I won't." Rory said while shaking his head quickly back and forth.

"Rory there's no reason for you to be missing matches right now," Niall tried to reason with him.

"No. I'm not going. I need to be here. I can't go. Please don't do that. Please don't ask me to leave. _Please_." Rory begged, panic evident in his voice.

"Okay. It's okay. Nobody is making you go anywhere," Harry pulled Rory into his arms and his eyes snapped up to meet Niall's when he realized their son was shaking "It's okay, love. It's okay."

Niall had no idea what had gotten into their son and it didn't matter right now. What mattered was being there for Rory and calming him down so he lay down on the other side of Rory on the bed and cuddled into him, making sure Rory was safe and secure between the two of them.

"What's going on, love? You're shaking," Harry asked quietly, his fingers carding through Rory's hair.

"I don't want to go," Rory said through his tears, his cheek pressed against Harry's chest, his arms around his waist.

"You don't have to go. I promise you don't have to go," Harry kissed the top of his head, his eyes meeting Niall's, concern in both of their eyes. "Can you tell us what's wrong though?"

"You almost died," Rory sniffed and held on to Harry tighter "I thought you were going to die and I only lost Mam less than two years ago. I couldn't lose one of my Dads too. Especially not when I just found you guys. I just- I need to be here so I can see you everyday, so I can see for myself that you're okay. I don't want to be on another continent if something happens and you have to go back to the hospital."

Harry's heart nearly broke when he heard that and when he looked at Niall he could see he was feeling the same way, his baby blue eyes pooling with tears.

"Oh love," Harry grabbed onto his son, kissing his head over and over again "I'm sorry. I had no idea you were this affected by what happened to me. I knew you were upset, I know how much you love me, but I had no idea this was going on. I had no idea you weren't okay."

"I'm okay...I just don't want to go home without you."

Harry didn't think that was it. He felt it was more than that. He felt that his accident was a bit traumatizing for Rory and he wasn't telling them about it. He looked at Niall again and saw his brow furrowed, his lips frowning as he looked at their son. He was definitely as worried about him as Harry was and Harry knew they'd have to talk about it later, knew they'd have to figure out what to do to help their son. For right now, though, he didn't want to push it and upset Rory even more.

"Hey. I'm getting a bit sick of being in bed all the time. I think I'll come sit outside with you. You can go for a swim and I'll sit in the shade and keep you company. When Finn wakes up he can come out too." Harry said, letting go of Rory so he could sit up.

"Okay. Let Dad help you though. You could get dizzy or something if you walk out there on your own." Rory said as he stood up.

"Of course your Dad is going to help me," Harry scoffed "Like I'd ever turn Niall down if he wants to put his hands on me."

"Oh my God," Rory groaned, throwing his hands up in the air and shaking his head "You're both disgusting. I'm going to put my swim shorts on."

Once he was gone, Harry blew out a breath and looked at Niall with a raised brow "Do you think we should do some research and see if we can find someone good for him to talk too? This obviously hit him harder than we thought. Maybe he didn't deal with his Mum's death as well as we thought? I just-I think we need to get ahead of this before it turns into something."

"We'll keep an eye on it," Niall nodded "Maybe we can wait to talk to him when we get home? Everything is so fresh right now. Let's let him enjoy LA and enjoy spending time with you. Everyday he sees you're okay might help him. I think we need to be cautious. We don't want to make him feel cornered or anything."

"You're right. I don't want to push him and make it worse." Harry agreed.

"In the meantime, do you need help changing into shorts and a t-shirt? Any dizziness today?" Niall asked, rubbing a hand over Harry's back.

"A bit. Mostly just a headache which I caused myself by laughing so hard," Harry chuckled "I'll take my medication before we go out but my head isn't spinning or anything. I'll be fine to get dressed."

"Okay darlin'" Niall smiled and leaned in to press his forehead against the side of Harry's head, kissing his cheek softly "I love you so much ya know? Everything's really starting to feel like it's going to be okay again, doesn't it? I feel like the worst is over."

"Yeah. I agree. Everything is going to be okay."

  
~~~

  
And it was. Harry continued to improve and was cleared to fly home in the middle of December. As a surprise to the family, some of their good friends and family got together and decorated their whole house for Christmas, including a Christmas tree so that the family of four could relax when they got home and enjoy the Christmas season.

Once Christmas was over, Niall was able to get back to work, while Rory was heavily back into training. The only thing different was they had to hire a Nanny to stay with Finn during the day because Harry could have a dizzy spell or debilitating headache at any time. Harry hated that he couldn't care for his son on his own like he used to but he knew it was what's best for Finn until he was feeling one hundred percent better and cleared by a Doctor.

They ended up hiring Louis' sister Lottie. After four years at Uni, she discovered she hated what she was doing and dropped out, moving in with Louis until she figured out what to do with her life. She had a ton of experience looking after her younger siblings, same as Louis did and she was smart, fun, friendly and responsible. Louis trusted her with his life and they knew Louis wouldn't recommend anybody, including his own sister, if they wouldn't protect Finn with their life, so they called her over to do some interviews and were very happy with what they saw. Finn really seemed to take to her as well, completely fascinated by her long, bleached blonde hair, always grabbing it in his little fist and shoving it in his mouth. She didn't seem to mind though, just laughed it off and gently extricated the hair from his hand.

In January Finn had his first birthday which was a huge affair. Their house was blocked with friends and family all day and Finn loved every second of it, completely eating up the attention as he was passed around from one person to another, giggling and showing off the few teeth he had. Eventually he fell asleep on his Grandpa Bobby, drooling up a storm all over Bobby's shirt. Bobby snorted with laughter and said it was no different than what Niall used to do, sending the whole house into laughter, except for Niall who simply scowled at his father.

Now, a couple weeks after Finn's birthday, Niall was coming in through the front door after work and nearly being flattened against the wall by his husband throwing himself at him.

"Harry!" Niall yelled "What the fuck is wrong with you?" Niall held himself up with a hand against the wall, the other one around Harry's waist holding him up so he doesn't topple over.

"Sorry! Sorry!" Harry managed to steady himself and stand up straight, holding out a hand to pull Niall away from the wall "I was excited and I slipped or lost my balance, I have no idea, I just know all of a sudden I was flying at you. Sorry."

"We're you running?" Niall stared at his husband, concerned "You only had surgery two months ago, Harry. You shouldn't be running in case you get dizzy and lose your balance."

"I know, I know," Harry grabbed Niall's hand and started pulling him toward the kitchen "I'm just so excited. I have to show you something. Or, I hope I have something to show you. Here we go!"

Niall walked into the kitchen behind Harry, confused when he just saw Lottie there feeding Finn. "Harry. I love our son with all my heart but I've seen him eat hundreds of times. You didn't have to run me over at the door."

Harry shook his head and walked over to Finn, kneeling down so he was even with Finn in his high chair. "Hi Finn. Daddy is home. Do you see Daddy?" Harry pointed at Niall and Finn looked up, squealing and kicking his legs when he saw Niall "Who is it Finn? Who's that?"

"Dada!" Finn screamed, banging his fist on his tray and grinning at Niall, his mouth and cheeks covered in mashed potato. Lottie tried to wipe it off but Finn only giggled and moved his head away, screaming "Dada!" again.

Niall stood there in shock, his mouth dropped open as he looked at his beautiful, precious, adorable little boy smiling up at him. His beautiful little boy who had just called him Dada for the first time. "Harry he...he..."

"Yeah," Harry looked at him with watery eyes, a huge smile on his face "He did it earlier. I was showing him a video of you on my phone and he just...said it!! He recognized you and he kept wanting me to play the video over and over again."

"Oh my God," Niall whispered, tears pooling in his own eyes. He walked over to the high chair and lifted his son out, kissing his cheek repeatedly and holding him close, swaying back and forth "I love you so much. Yes I do. You made me so happy tonight buddy. You make me so happy everyday."

"Dada!" Finn screamed again, his little arms wrapping around Niall's neck. He shoved his face into Niall's neck, getting drool and mashed potato everywhere but Niall could care less, he simply laughed and held onto his son while locking eyes with his husband over Finn's head.

"I can't believe it," Niall said to Harry "God he's so amazing isn't he? So smart."

Harry walked up to them and leaned in to kiss Niall over Finn's head, one of his large hands resting on top of Niall's on Finn's back "Finn loves his Daddy so much. Don't you Finn? Always so happy to see Daddy."

"Dada!" Finn said again, quieter this time, one of his tiny hands brushing over Niall's cheek leaving a trail of drool in its wake. Niall held him close and kissed his chubby cheeks over and over again until Finn was wriggling in his arms and giggling so hard his cheeks were turning red.

"I love you," Niall kissed Finn's nose "My baby boy."

Finn smiled and dipped his head,resting it in Niall's shoulder. Niall swayed him back and forth, his hand gently rubbing circles over his back "I can finish feeding him Lottie. Looks like he's almost done anyway."

Lottie smiled and stood up from her chair, wiping her hands in a wet cloth "I'll head out then, unless you need me for anything else?"

"No, I think we're good. We're just going to have a quiet night I think. This little one looks like he might fall asleep before he even finishes his dinner." Niall laughed.

"Okay. I'll see you tomorrow morning then. See you Finn," Lottie said, leaning in to kiss the baby's cheek. She said goodnight to them both then they heard her get her keys and purse from the foyer and the door gently close behind her.

"We had a busy day today," Harry said as Niall sat down with Finn in his lap, picking up the tiny baby spoon to feed him the rest of his potatoes "Now that he can walk, that's all he wants to do. He just runs around on his tiny little legs, all wobbly and falling all over the place. He's so cute though. He just gets right back up and starts walking again, squealing and laughing happily."

"My boy," Niall said fondly "You got him on video right?"

"Course I did. I'll show you later. Dinner in ten minutes okay? Rory is out so its just us." Harry said as he checked something in the oven.

"Okay. I think Finn is more than done anyway. I'll just go change and wash up. I'll be right down," Niall said, kissing the top of Finn's head as he stood up. He was walking toward the entrance to the kitchen to head upstairs when Harry stopped him.

"Not without this," He murmured before he put his hands on Niall's hips and dipped his head to kiss him. Niall's mouth opened immediately, craving his husband like he was chocolate or nicotine. It had only been ten hours since they snogged before he left for work but it felt like forever and he couldn't stop the whimper that came from him as he wrapped his arms around Harry's neck and pulled their bodies flush up against each other. Harry's tongue expertly worked over his own, his hands firm on his hips, squeezing gently before sliding down to Niall's arse and grabbing a handful.

"Harry," Niall pulled back from the kiss, laughing against his lips "Don't grope me in front of our son. Also, if this continues, dinner will burn."

Harry whined but kissed Niall's lips one last time before pulling away with a sigh "Couldn't resist welcoming you home. Love you so much."

"I love you, too," Niall pecks his lips then turned to walk out toward the stairs again, not before turning back to wink at Harry and say "You can grope me as much as you want later "

The last thing he heard before he exited the kitchen was Harry groaning.

  
~~~

 

Harry gave Finn a bath after dinner since Niall usually loaded the dishwasher and tidied the kitchen because Harry did the cooking, then they curled up on the couch in the living room to watch some telly while Finn fell asleep on Niall's chest. Niall took him upstairs to put him to bed while Harry waited downstairs in the living room, idly flicking through the channels while he waited for his husband.

"I could seriously sit and watch him sleep for hours," Niall walked back into the room five minutes later, tucking himself under Harry's arm and cuddling into his side.

"Me too. He's beautiful. So precious and so happy all the time. I hope we have five more just like him," Harry says with a dreamy look on his face.

"Calm your tits there, darlin', one at a time yeah?" Niall chuckled and tilted his head up to kiss Harry's jaw.

"That's not a no! I'll take it!" Harry said, pumping a fist in the air.

"You're crazy," Niall laughed happily "But yeah, we should talk about having another baby. We both said we don't want our kids to be far apart in age. I have one condition though."

"What is it?" Harry asked curiously.

"I want to do IVF this time. Rory and Finn are both biologically related to me. I want our next child to have your genes. I want to look at our child and see your curls, your dimples, your beautiful eyes. I've wanted to raise your child since we first met I think," Niall chuckled softly "What do you think?"

"That I love you with all my heart," Harry said with watery eyes "I would love to do IVF, baby. Whenever you want to start I'm ready."

"I think we should start right away. It could take awhile to find a surrogate. Someone we like and trust. Then the IVF might not work the first time and we might have to try again so it could be a year and a half or more before we actually have a baby." Niall said.

"Okay. We can start looking in to it tomorrow. I'll make some calls while you're at work and let you know what I find out tomorrow night." Harry says happily.

"Sounds good," Niall says "Hey. I forgot to ask how your meeting with Simon went today?"

"It was good. I told him I couldn't get the album out by Spring or go on a tour this year. I'm so disappointed but I can't risk my health and my Doctors told me I need to really take things slow with my recovery. He completely understood. He said he was just happy to see I'm okay and that we can revisit this in the summer. If I'm able to record we can get the album out in November and then I can tour the following summer. Do the same thing we planned to do this summer." Harry explained.

"Thank you," Niall whispered, his cheek rubbing against Harry's chest as he cuddled closer.

"For what?" Harry asked, confused.

"I just- I know how much you were looking forward to the album and the tour. I was afraid you'd be stubborn and push yourself too much and I'd have to watch you collapse on stage or something. I-"

"No baby. I promise you that won't happen. If I were single with no kids, yeah, I'd be stubborn and try to do everything like planned. I'm not though. I have an amazing husband and two gorgeous children. I would never, ever put you through that worry. Never." Harry promised, kissing Niall's head over and over again while carding his fingers through his hair.

"Thanks darlin'. All I ever want is for you to be okay." Niall murmured.

"Well what I need to be okay right now is to grope you like you promised," Harry said into Niall's ear and before Niall could respond, Harry was pulling him onto his lap and manhandling him until he was straddling his lap.

"Harry!" Niall yelled, grabbing onto Harry's shoulders to steady himself before bursting out laughing "Oh my God!"

"Come here," Harry grinned, sliding a hand behind Niall's neck to pull his head down "I really need to snog my husband right now."

Niall went willingly, his lips meeting Harry's in a soft kiss, moving over Harry's slowly and sensually while his fingers slipped into Harry's hair at the nape of his neck.

"It's still so strange to slip my fingers into your hair and not feel your curls," Niall murmured against Harry's lips, a smile on his face to show Harry it wasn't a bad thing, that he loved Harry's hair no matter what style it was in.

Harry's head had to be shaved for the surgery and once he was out of the hospital and the bandages finally came off, he had a bit of an identity crisis and mini meltdown. He had shoulder length hair for nearly ten years and to look into the mirror and see nothing but a bit of stubble as his hair started to grow back, was a major shock to him. Even though it was just hair and something so superficial, he broke down one night and cried, afraid Niall wouldn't find him attractive anymore. Niall had been shocked because he didn't care about Harry's hair, he loved him for who he was and was just so happy and grateful he was okay.

It had been a long night of Niall holding Harry while he cried and whispering in his ear over and over again that he loved him, was in love with him, no matter what he looked like. To be perfectly honest, the physical attraction Niall felt for Harry didn't wane one bit. He was still the sexiest man Niall had ever seen and just one kiss or one touch from him sent Niall's heart racing.

Harry smiled sweetly back at Niall, his hands slipping up the back of Niall's shirt and caressing the skin there "The curls should grow back any day now. I'll look like I did when I was eighteen and first broke into the music business. I didn't start growing my hair out until I was twenty."

"I remember. I used to see your picture on the magazines in Tesco," Niall chuckled "Never in my wildest dreams did I think I'd ever meet you let alone end up married to you. I thought you were very cute though."

"Cute?" Harry screwed up his face "I don't want to be cute!"

"You were eighteen with a mop of curly hair, and a lanky body you hadn't quite grown into yet. What else would you be but cute?" Niall teased.

"Well I don't want to be cute!" Harry whined.

"Darlin' in case you haven't noticed, you've more than grown into that body of yours. Six feet tall with all those muscles. You're quite sexy. Maybe you didn't notice the noises you get out of me when we're fucking?" Niall raised an eyebrow.

"Oh I noticed. In fact I'm going to get some of those noises out of you tonight," Harry said in a low voice, moving in to kiss along Niall's neck until he made it up to his lips again. He nipped at Niall's bottom lip then parted his lips slightly to kiss him, sucking on his lip for a second before diving in with his tongue, kissing Niall passionately.

They kissed for a long time, sometimes slow and sweet, their tongues gently caressing each other and sometimes it was frantic, their tongues fighting for dominance and their breathing deep and heavy. Eventually they were both hard as hands wandered everywhere and Harry started to slowly circle his hips, lifting them slightly to meet Niall who was grinding down on him.

"Fuck!" Niall gasped and pulled back, his chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath "We have to stop. You can't- we can't- you're not supposed to be doing anything rigorous. You had major surgery two months ago."

Harry buried his face in Niall's neck, his lips brushing over his pulse point and his teeth just barely scraping over the skin "Exactly. I had surgery two months ago. It's been over two months since we've had sex. My balls are gonna fall off if I don't get some soon."

"Harry-"

"I know what you're going to say. That's why I'm prepared. I called my Doctor here in London and I also called Dr.Roberts in LA. They both said I could have sex again. They just said to be aware of how I'm feeling and use good judgement. Basically, if I have sex when I have a massive headache or am feeling dizzy, then it's my own fault if I end up feeling worse. Right now I feel bloody fantastic so could you please fuck me before I lose my mind?" Harry asked in a pleading voice.

"You're insane!" Niall broke out into laughter, his forehead coming to rest on Harry's "I can't believe you asked the Doctor if we could have sex."

"Really? You can't?" Harry scoffed "We haven't had sex in over two months. I would ask every Doctor in the world if I had to."

"You're crazy and I love you so much," Niall grinned, sliding back so he could stand up from Harry's lap "Come on then. We have a lot of sex to make up for. Best do it upstairs in case Rory should come home and walk in. He'd never forgive us."

"No, he really wouldn't," Harry let out a cackling laugh as he to, stood up, his hands sliding over Niall's hips as he walked behind him for the stairs, kissing his neck along the way.

Some time later, when all their clothes were shed and scattered across the floor, when Niall has gently laid Harry out across the bed and kissed every inch of his body, when Harry was carefully opened up by Niall's long fingers, Niall was moving inside his husband, high pitched whimpers leaving Harry's mouth after every thrust.

"Harry..." Niall whispered against Harry's neck as he moved at a steady pace. His breathing was ragged and he was letting out soft grunts as he sunk deeper and deeper into his husband "I missed you so much. Missed this. I don't know what I would have done if I'd lost you."

"I missed you, too, baby. Missed being this close to you," Harry said in a breathy voice, his legs tightening around Niall's waist and his fingers digging into Niall's sweaty back.

Niall lifted his face from Harry's neck and brought his lips back to Harry's, attempting to kiss him through their heavy breathing "If I ever lost you I-I could never be with anyone else this way again. I never could. Never. It would hurt too much."

"It's okay," Harry soothed his husband when he heard the break in his voice "I'm here. You didn't lose me. I'll always be right here."

Niall quickly nodded his head, his thrusts coming faster as he neared his release "Are you close darlin'? I want you to come."

"God yeah," Harry gasped, throwing his head back and working his hand over his cock. He was coming minutes later, the sound he made when his orgasm hit, muffled by Niall's neck.

"Fuck-" Niall cursed as he felt Harry trembling underneath him. His body stilled and he came inside his husband, holding on to him for dear life.

"Yes! Fuck that was so good," Harry said as he tried to gulp in air, half laughing as he came down.

"That's an understatement," Niall said before burying his face in Harry's neck and starting to giggle. Of course that got Harry started because all of Niall's laughter was contagious, even his giggles.

"I have no idea what we're laughing at right now," Harry managed to gasp out through his giggles.

"Me either. I just love you and I'm really fucking happy," Niall answered.

"Well I just love you, too, Niall Horan. Now kiss me."

"Gladly," Niall smiled, before sweeping down to kiss his husband.

  
~~~

  
The next few months were eventful but good. Harry continued to improve and his hair continued to grow back, seemingly even more curly than ever before, he decided to grow it out a little but not nearly as long as it was when his head was shaved, more like the way it was when he was twenty and first started rocking the headscarves. Niall absolutely loved it and had taken to riding Harry with his hands buried amongst those thick curls, and tugging on them, coaxing filthy moans out of his husband.

Finn was getting bigger every day. Not long after adding Dada to his list of words that included yes, no, dog and bye bye, he said Papa for the first time. It was the middle of the night and he woke up crying and Niall and Harry had both just woken up to hear a sniffled "Papa" over the monitor. Naturally Harry jumped up out of the bed and ran to his son, tears streaming down his face at hearing that one little word. Afterward he brought Finn into his and Niall's bedroom where they both cuddled him and made him giggle before gently rocking him back to sleep.

Rory was doing fabulous in Football, continuing to get praise from his coaches and teammates as well as from the Manager of the Arsenal team who had taken to watching the U/18 matches very closely.

After Harry's accident he slowly started to relax and not be so afraid something bad would happen to his Pop again. He declined his parents offer of getting a therapist to talk to, promising to always talk to them and let them know if he needed help.

In July he celebrated his eighteenth birthday where he went out to the clubs and got spectacularly pissed, ending up spending the whole next day in bed with a hangover. Neither Niall nor Harry were under any illusions that he never drank a drop of alcohol before he turned eighteen but now that he was legal, he was going all out and enjoying being a teenager. Niall and Harry didn't have a problem with it as long as he was responsible, always had a DD and it didn't become a regular thing. They didn't have to worry about that of course. Football was extremely important to Rory and he wasn't about to blow it all by getting drunk every night.

In August, Niall and Harry made a final decision on a surrogate and all the paperwork was signed meaning they could get started on the IVF process. Their surrogate was named Melanie and she was a thirty year old successful lawyer. Her career was her baby and she had no desire to have children of her own but she still wanted to help couples who didn't have that choice to make. Specifically Gay couples. Her younger brother was Gay and she was hoping to be a surrogate for him one day, if he chose to settle down and have kids. In the meantime, there were other couples she could help and Niall and Harry were so happy to have found her.

Then, in September when they were waiting to start IVF, Rory came to them one night with some news they hadn't been suspecting.

"Dad? Pop? You home?" Rory called out as he entered the house on a Friday evening just before dinner.

"Kitchen!!" They both yelled at the same time, making Rory smile.

Rory made his way to the kitchen where Harry was cooking like normal and Niall was just finishing feeding Finn. He took a seat at the table across from his Dad and asked his Pop if he had time to sit for a few minutes or did he have to watch dinner?

"No. It's good for now," Harry came over and sat down next to Niall, his hand automatically finding Niall's thigh under the table "What's up?"

Rory looked between his parents for a moment then swallowed before speaking "So. I want you to meet someone." Right to the point.

"Okay. Well you know we don't mind it when you have friends over as long as you don't disturb your brother." Niall said, not quite sure why Rory felt like he had to announce something like this. Usually his friends just came over and if Niall and Harry hadn't met them before, Rory introduces them.

A tiny grin flitted across Rory's face as he looked at his parents "Yeah well, this isn't really a friend."

Just as Niall gives Rory a weird look and says "What does that even mean?" Harry's eyes go wide and he slaps Niall across the arm.

"Ow!!" Niall turns to look at Harry with his mouth hanging open "What the fuck did you do that for?"

"Language!" Harry smacks Niall's arm again "Niall Horan, if Finnegan starts repeating that four letter word I'm going to wash your mouth out with soap!"

Niall's eyes widen "Oh shit! No, I mean shoot! Shoot! Finn don't listen to Daddy okay? Daddy's bad. Daddy's not nice."

"Yes, don't listen to Daddy, Finn." Harry says before turning back to Rory "So. Is this person you want us to meet a girl by any chance?"

"A girl?" Niall's eyebrows shoot up as he stares at his son "Have you been dating a girl and didn't tell us? Who? For how long? Why didn't you tell us?"

"Good God you sound like a teenage girl gossiping right now," Rory rolls his eyes at his Dad.

"Excuse me!" Niall says indignantly while Harry sits next to him cackling.

"If you'd let me talk for a minute I can tell you what's going on," Rory gives his parents a look then continues talking when they're both quiet "Yes it's a girl. Her name is Anna and I met her last summer."

"Last summer???? A year ago last summer? You've been dating this girl for a year and didn't tell us?" Harry looks incredulous.

"Not exactly, no. We met but we were both really busy. Me with Footie and she with Uni. We texted a lot and went on a couple dates but it was really casual like, if we ever found we had the same night free, we'd go out and have some fun, nothing serious. Then Pop's accident happened and I was scared to death for awhile, afraid I'd lose you. We talked a lot when I was in LA with you guys. She helped me a lot. I don't even know how many times she calmed me down when I was freaking out. After that things kind of shifted and got a bit serious. We wanted to be more than just a casual date every now and then but I was still busy with Footie and she had to go to New York for six months for an internship. She was gone from January to July and somehow we managed to talk almost everyday. Then when she got home in July we finally were able to give it a shot seriously. I didn't want to say anything until I knew for sure if we could make it work. Obviously it's only been two months but I like her a lot so I asked her if she'd come meet you and she said yes." Rory said, letting out a long breath once he was done.

Niall and Harry are speechless for a minute, just staring at Rory until Harry finally speaks up "I feel like I was nowhere near as mature as that when I was seventeen. I mean, you basically decided not to get serious with someone you clearly like a lot because you both had no time. You stayed friends for a full year until the time was right and you could make it work. There are forty year old people who don't make a decision like that and their relationship ends up suffering because of it. That's amazing. I'm so proud of you."

"Thanks Pop," Rory smiled shyly at Harry "Feels like it was worth the wait so far."

"Oh my God," Niall finally spoke "We've turned our son into a sap! This is brilliant!"

"Oh shut up," Rory muttered, folding his arms over his chest. He tries to glare at Niall but it's ruined when he has to bite his lip to keep from letting a big smile take over his face.

"Ignore your Dad. I want to hear more about this Anna," Harry said excitedly.

"What do you want to know?" Rory shrugged.

Niall rolled his eyes while leaning down to pick up the spoon Finn had thrown on the floor. He sees Finn has busied himself with a little toy car so he tosses the spoon on the table and looked at Rory "Start with how you met."

A fond smile came across Rory's face and Harry turned his head to look at Niall, his eyebrows raised because it certainly seemed to him that Rory was quite smitten with this girl and he wondered if Niall could see it too.

"Well it was quite cliche actually. We literally ran into each other at a Starbucks. She nearly took me out," Rory shook his head, chuckling "There's something you should know about her before I go on though "

"Oh my God," Niall threw his head back and groaned "She's forty right? That's what you're going to tell us? She's old enough to be your Mother?"

"Dad!!! No she's not forty. Jesus. She just turned twenty one. That's only three years older than me and if you say anything I will smack you because you're three years older than Harry!" Rory warned, narrowing his eyes at Niall.

Niall held his hands up in surrender and leaned back in his chair again "No. Three years I don't have a problem with."

"Good because it wouldn't matter anyway. I'm an adult. I can make my own decisions." Rory huffed, crossing his arms over his chest again.

Harry rolled his eyes at his two boys fondly, "What is it you want to tell us about her?"

"She's deaf and that plays a big part in how we met so...yeah." Rory said, looking a little nervous. He wasn't exactly sure how his parents would react to the news. Obviously they weren't mean people and would never discriminate but a hearing person dating a deaf person can be challenging at times and he didn't want them to go overboard protecting him and trying to talk him out of the relationship.

"Deaf?" Niall had a look of surprise on his face "Huh. That's not what I was expecting to hear."

"Me neither. How did that play a part in how you two met?" Harry asked.

"Well like I said, we met at Starbucks. I was behind her in the queue waiting to pick up my drink. She was poking around in her purse looking for something and kept stepping back, clearly not realizing there was a wet floor sign right behind her so I warned her about it but she just kept at her purse not even acknowledging me. I thought maybe she didn't hear me over the noise of the machines so I said it louder and she still ignored me. Then she got her drink, turned around and tripped right over the sign and guess what? Her iced latte went all over my shirt! Naturally I was pissed off. I told her more than once the sign was there and she ignored me. I told her as much and she still didn't even acknowledge me so I tapped her on the shoulder and she finally looked up at me from where she was frantically trying to clean the mess up off the floor. I started telling her off and she just stared at me squinting her eyes at me and looking confused. Finally she put her hands up and was like 'Whoa whoa, stop! Could you talk a bit slower please? I'm deaf and I can't read your lips, you're talking too fast.' Naturally I was horrified! I thought she was just ignoring me the whole time."

"What happened next?" Harry sat forward with his chin in his hand, completely in to the story.

Niall snorted and shook his head at his husband "You're acting like this is some romantic comedy or something."

"It kind of is, Niall, now shut up, I'm trying to listen to our son." Harry shushed him, drawing a loud laugh from Rory.

"Anyway. I spoke a bit slower and told her I was sorry because I thought she had been ignoring me and she said 'why are you sorry? Have you seen your shirt?' Then she was trying to clean my shirt with some napkins but it was useless, I was drenched. She felt so bad and apologized so many times. I told her it was honestly fine because I have extra shirts in my footie bag in my car. Her eyes honestly lit up and she said 'Oh! You play Football? I love Football!' So I asked who her team was, she said Arsenal and I swear to God angels sang or something because if she had been a United fan or something, it would have been so awkward. After that I ran out and changed into a new shirt and bought her a new drink then we sat in Starbucks and talked for two hours." Rory finished, a huge grin on his face.

"That's amazing! It's like fate! I might have to write a song about this. Do you think she'd mind if I wrote a song about this " Harry asked, practically bouncing around in his chair.

"Settle down a minute darlin'" Niall chuckled, his hand reaching out to squeeze Harry's thigh before he smiled at Rory "You seem happy and you seem to really like her a lot. When did you want us to meet her?"

Rory shrugged "She could come for dinner tomorrow night if you're not busy? You don't have to go all out and cook a lot Pop. We could have a BBQ. It's still nice in September."

"Alright. I'll pick up some chicken tomorrow. Niall, you can grill the chicken and we'll make kebabs! Ask Anna if she likes those. If she doesn't we'll do something else." Harry said.

"She'll like it. That girl will eat anything. I don't have a clue where she puts it." Rory said, looking perplexed.

"Another thing you have in common then," Harry laughed happily.

"We have a lot in common actually. She's pretty cool," Rory smiled.

"Well I'm looking forward to meeting her. We both are, right darlin'?" Niall leaned in to kiss his husbands cheek.

"Definitely!" Harry grinned as Niall's lips met his cheek making his dimple pop. Of course that made Niall smile and he couldn't resist pressing his lips to the dimple and kissing it a few times.

"Okay stop being gross for a minute. When she gets here tomorrow, remember to talk slow or just at a normal pace and don't turn your back on her while you're talking to her or she won't know what you're saying. Also, please don't embarrass me?" Rory pleaded, knowing full well how embarrassing his parents could be sometimes.

"Love, if she's important to you then she's important to us. We'll treat her right. Don't worry." Harry assured him.

"Thank you," Rory smiled at them "Is dinner ready soon? I'm starving."

Harry and Niall both laughed, Harry getting up to check on the dinner he was cooking. They ate a lively dinner, the three of them chatting excitedly about Rory's girlfriend but also the IVF that would be happening soon. Rory was just as excited as his parents about a new baby and couldn't wait until it became a reality.

After dinner, Rory took Finn upstairs with him to spend some time with his little man while Harry and Niall stayed in the kitchen to clean up.

"He's really smitten with this girl isn't he?" Harry said to Niall as they loaded the dishwasher.

"Yeah darlin'. I really think he is."

  
~~~

  
It didn't take Niall and Harry very long to figure out why their son was so smitten with his girlfriend. The moment Rory walked in the door with her the next afternoon, Harry was struck by how stunningly beautiful she was. She was tall, probably 5'10 or 5'11 since Harry and Rory were both six feet tall and she was almost as tall as them, she had long, thick blonde hair that cascaded almost down to the middle of her back in shiny waves and her eyes were so blue they could rival Niall's in how stunning and bright they were.

Her smile though...it was wide and genuine, warm and sincere and Harry liked her before she even said hello.

"Dad. Pop. This is my girlfriend Anna." Rory said, his hand almost resting protectively on her lower back. Then, he turned to Anna and really shocked Niall and Harry when he starting signing at the same time he spoke "Anna these are my parents. My Pop, Harry on the left and my Dad Niall on the right."

"Hello," Anna greeted them with a warm smile, holding her hand out to shake both of theirs. They both said 'hello' and 'nice to meet you' before Niall turned and looked at his son, shocked.

"You know sign language? Since when?" He asked with wide eyes.

Anna laughed delightedly and reached to hold one of Rory's hands in her own "He started learning not long after we first met. He was a quick study. I was impressed. Not many hearing people bother to learn sign language even though they may know a deaf person. Showed me pretty early on that he had a big heart and was worth keeping around."

Rory's cheeks turned pink and he groaned, taking his hand from his girlfriends so he could sign "Apparently it's you I had to worry about embarrassing me, not my parents!"

Anna laughed again, Harry noting that the sound of her laughter was like a pretty song and was completely in awe at how well she spoke. Harry had met deaf people before and while not all of them spoke, the ones that did often sounded a bit different. With Anna, you could barely hear a difference. Harry wouldn't know she was deaf if Rory hadn't told him.

Niall's smile was wide as he looked at his son with his girlfriend. They looked really good together and Anna just exuded such warmth and happiness that it put Niall at ease that his son probably wasn't being used because he's a Football player or because his Father was famous. She seemed one hundred percent genuine.

"I think you should tell us more sweet and romantic things Rory does, Anna," Harry said with a wink "We'd love to hear them."

"I hate you all," Rory says, folding his arms over his chest and pouting.

"That's fine," Anna nodded her head "I only came here for Finn anyway. Cutest baby in the world! Rory's phone is filled with photos of him."

Niall roared with laughter at the incredulous look on his sons face, slapping a hand against his leg "I like you, Anna. I hope you're around for a long time."

"Well that all depends on Finn doesn't it? Whether or not he'll have me." Anna joked and even though Rory was pretending to be all indignant, Niall and Harry could both see how much he really liked this girl. How funny and brilliant he thought she was. To be honest, five minutes in and Niall's pretty sure he's completely in awe of this girl himself.

"Would you like something to drink, Anna?" Harry asked when he stopped laughing "It's such a nice, warm day so we were sitting outside in the back and there's iced tea or lemonade, water if you prefer?"

"I'd love some lemonade. Thank you," Anna smiled at Harry then followed the three men through the kitchen to get to the chairs out on the deck. Once they were seated, Harry poured everyone something to drink then settled in to chat.

"Thank you for having me over. Rory has talked about you so much over the past year, I couldn't wait to meet you!" Anna said with a big smile on her face.

"I hope he's being nice when he talks about us," Niall jokes, reaching over to give Rory a gentle smack on the arm.

"He is. He told me about how you all first met. I may have gotten a bit emotional. I like happy endings. I gotta tell ya, I'm glad you two didn't meet somewhere randomly because you look so much a like I'm afraid you might have both done some serious freaking out." Anna said to Niall.

"They do look so much alike don't they?" Harry looked lovingly at his husband and son. "They even scowl the same. It's brilliant. Oh- see? Scowling the same" Harry laughs as they both give him the same look, Anna laughing as well.

"Rory told us a bit about how you and he met as well. It was an interesting story," Niall chuckled.

"Yes," Anna signed "Spilling my iced latte all over the hottest guy I've ever seen has always been a dream of mine. Probably the most embarrassing thing I've done to date. Oh wait- no it's not. That would have to be the time I took out five people at the one time while ice skating. I've never tried that again."

Harry's eyes grew wide and he let out a loud bark of laughter. Niall and Rory were both laughing loudly as well. They haven't seemed to stop laughing since Anna arrived. She was funny, witty, smart and beautiful and looking at his son, he didn't think it would be too long now before he was in love with her.

"Are you a klutz like me?" Harry asked, still laughing.

"Sorry?" Anna squinted her eyes a bit and Harry realized she probably couldn't read his lips because he was laughing while he spoke. Rory signed for her, though and soon her eyes lit up and she started laughing herself.

"Not as bad as you I don't think!"

"What?" Harry squawked "Rory have you been showing her my top ten falls on YouTube?"

"Nope," Anna answered for him "Some of my best mates are fans of yours. I obviously have not heard your music but some of your lyrics are very moving. You're very talented."

"Oh," Harry smiled sheepishly "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Anna smiled "I've also been to one of your shows at Wembley. A friend of mine...well let's just say she dated this guy when we were sixteen that mistook her for a punching bag apparently. She finally got the courage to speak up and have him arrested. She was so depressed though, so I got the tickets to cheer her up. I knew I couldn't hear the show but I could watch and honestly, your shows are very entertaining even when you can't hear a thing. You never stop moving. I'd pass out. I'm so very much not in shape for that."

"Not true!" Rory scoffed "You run with me sometimes."

"Yes. At a leisurely pace. You always take it easy on me. Have you seen the way your Pop throws himself around on stage for two hours?"

"I've seen it, yes." Rory laughs "It is definitely entertaining."

"I'm sorry to hear your friend went through that," Harry frowned "Did she have a good time at the show?"

"Oh yeah! She was jumping around the whole time, singing all the lyrics. It made her really happy. Thank you for that. Even if you didn't realize what you were doing," Anna smiled gratefully at Harry.

"Oh. I love hearing this stuff. I just love to sing. I never thought it could help people and make them happy. Thank you for telling me about that." Harry says.

"Maybe you and Rory could bring her around sometime? You'd like to meet her wouldn't you H?" Niall asked.

"Yes! That's a good idea!"

"Okay. I'll have to ease her into it though. She's met Rory but I don't think she knows his parents are Narry," Anna laughed "I'd rather not bring her here and have her faint on you or something."

"After all the years we've been together, I'm still baffled that so many people seem invested in me and Harry," Niall shook his head "Anyway. Rory says you're at Uni right now. What are you studying?"

"I'm almost done a Marketing degree. Just started my last year at Uni. I've been working hard and was lucky enough to get an internship at a Publishing company. They had me at their New York offices for six months and I absolutely loved it. Books. Reading. It's a passion of mine. A lot of kids are into music growing up. I didn't have that. I had books and I knew I wanted to work in publishing but it's a hard career to break into so I chose Marketing knowing I could break into Publishing that way." Anna explained, confidently.

"That's amazing! You really seem to have a good head on your shoulders. You're confident and you know what you want. Sounds a lot like Rory to me. It makes sense that you two hit it off." Harry said, clearly impressed with Anna and not bothering to hide it at all.

"His confidence is one of the first things I noticed about him. At seventeen he already knew he wanted to play Football and had already been working hard for years to achieve it. We're the same that way and at the end of the day it's nice to have someone who understands you isn't it?" Anna said, turning to smile at Rory.

Well said," Niall nodded his agreement "Sometimes it's everything."

Rory leaned in and kissed Anna on the cheek before pulling back to sign something. He didn't say it out loud but Niall and Harry could tell it was something sweet and private by the way Anna's cheeks pinked up and a shy smile spread across her face.

They watched their son interacting with his girlfriend for a moment, their own hands linked together under the table. Harry leans close to Niall and whispers in his ear "I think we're witnessing the beginning of something great here."

"Yeah darlin', I think so too. Do you know why?" Harry shook his head "Because our son is looking at Anna the same way I looked at you when we first got together. The way I still look at you today."

Harry smiled sweetly and rested his chin on Niall's shoulder, staring at him from the side "Love you."

Niall turned his head slightly, just enough to graze his lips over Harry's "Love you back."

 

~~~

  
The next couple of months after Niall and Harry met Anna were very busy. Harry was able to finish his album during the summer and he spent a lot of October promoting the album which would drop in November. During the promotion he did around Europe, Niall and Finn stayed home because Harry was always a fairly short flight away from home and was able to get home every couple of days to see them. When the promo took him to America and Canada, Niall took the last two weeks of his vacation for the year and he, Finn and Lottie traveled with Harry.

Everything went great during the promo. It was like Harry had never left. The fans were still there, the interest was still there, and the first single off the album wasted no time shooting up the charts to the number one spot.

Also still alive and well was Narry. Niall more than once found himself being pulled into interviews with Harry, usually by Harry himself, and he had to admit...he didn't mind it. Harry always looked so happy when he talked about their relationship and Niall just wanted him to be happy so if that meant being on camera a few times, he could live with it. It actually brought back a lot of memories from their extended honeymoon when they traveled around America together while Harry was on tour and Niall had to admit he loved visiting some of the cities again that they visited before, reliving some of the romantic times they shared together in different cities around America.

In New York City, they had a night free and decided to dress up nice and see a show on Broadway. Surprisingly, even though it's one of the most famous Broadway shows of all time, neither one of them had ever seen 'The Phantom of the Opera' so they went to see it and Niall sat in awe for two hours, wondering how the hell anyone could sing like that. The actors had such amazing, powerful voices and he felt chills all over his body during every song.

After the show, Harry surprised Niall by taking him to Madison Avenue instead of back to their hotel. When they got out of their cab they were in front of Eleven Madison Park, a popular and expensive restaurant in NYC. They walked inside hand in hand and were quickly led to a private dining room that overlooked the main dining area and also had large windows that had a spectacular view of Madison Square Park.

"Jesus," Niall whispered as he looked around the large room with wide eyes. There was definitely a lot of money put into this place. It was truly beautiful and very romantic "This is beautiful H. What a view!"

"It's definitely a lovely view," Harry says, his chin resting in one of his hands, his eyes never once leaving Niall.

Niall turned to look at Harry and started waving his hand around toward the window "You're not even looking at- oh." Niall stops when he realizes Harry was talking about him, his cheeks heating up immediately "Harry..."

"You really are stunning tonight baby. So incredibly handsome," Harry reaches his hand across the table and links his fingers with Niall's "I love when you wear blue. It brings out your eyes. Takes my breath away when I look at you sometimes. I have to shake my head because I can't believe you're mine."

Niall bit his lip and ducked his head, trying to hide the blush he knew was creeping up his neck. He heard Harry chuckle softly then he was leaning over the table and tipping Niall's chin up with his index finger "Don't do that. I like it when you blush. You look even more gorgeous."

Niall couldn't do anything. He was at a loss for words like he always is when Harry talks about him this way. He never used to think he was anything special but then Harry came along and everyday he always makes Niall feel like the most loved and appreciated person in the world.

"Hey," Harry brushes his thumb over the dimple in Niall's chin and leans in to press their lips together softly "I love you. Thank you for coming here with me tonight. Thank you for being mine."

"Wouldn't want to be anyone else's" Niall murmured against Harry's lips "I love you darlin'"

Harry smiled sweetly and kissed Niall one last time before sitting back down in his seat. A waiter quietly entered the room then, looking impeccably dressed all in black with a white apron around his waist. He smiled at the both of them while offering a wine list and Niall gestured for Harry to take it and pick something, Niall would be happy with anything.

So he picked a bottle of Chardonnay from Burgundy that probably cost a fortune but Niall only smiled softly at his husband, knowing Harry loved to spoil him and he didn't want to take that away from him. The waiter, named Alexander, came back shortly with a bottle of wine, pouring them each a glass and leaving the bottle before scurrying off to give them time with the menu.

"What do you think baby? Anything catch your eye?" Harry asked as he perused the menu.

"Besides you?" Niall said, smirking when Harry's eyes never left the menu but a beautiful smile spread across his face, his dimples deepening in his cheeks "The boiled lobster with steamed vegetables sounds delicious."

"It does, yeah. I'm in the mood for something seafood. I think I'll get that too." Harry murmured, closing up his menu and laying it on the table. He placed his forearms along the edge of the table, linking his fingers together while he stared, smiling at Niall.

"What?" Niall laughed softly, wondering if he had something on his face.

"Nothing. I was just remembering the first time I saw you. Even in a picture the colour of your eyes was stunning. In that moment, I never imagined I'd get to wake up next to you every morning someday. I just feel really lucky."

Niall laid his arm on the table, palm up and Harry wasted no time resting his hand in Niall's. Niall squeezed gently, his thumb idly brushing over Harry's wedding band "I feel really lucky too. Really happy. We're building a great life together. I couldn't ask for more than that."

"It is a great life, isn't it? We've had a few obstacles but we got through them. Thank you for always supporting me. It's not easy being with somebody in the music industry. Everyone knows who you are, your privacy is taken away from you, our dates constantly get interrupted with people wanting selfies or autographs, we're constantly getting photographed and written about. It's a lot to ask someone to take on. I've watched as more than one of my celebrity friends lost someone they love because of everything I just mentioned. Did I ever tell you it happened to Ed? Five years his girlfriend stuck by him. They got through everything from the paps to the media writing vicious rumours about them, to long tours apart while she was here at home going to Uni. She always said she didn't care about any of it because she loved him and I believe she was being honest but after five years she reached her breaking point. She couldn't do it any more. Ed was frantic and beside himself. He wanted to marry her. He was willing to give everything up for her. No more albums or tours. They could move to some tiny town somewhere and he'd just write music. She just looked at him sadly and said it wouldn't change anything. He's so famous and so well loved that he could stop everything and still be hounded by the media and everyone ten years later. It would never end and love became not enough. It was devastating. All these years later he can't let her go. Can't get serious about anyone. I worry about him so much sometimes." Harry finished with a sigh.

"That's really sad. You didn't tell me about it but he's mentioned bits of it to me. I knew there was someone that kind of got away. You know that will never happen to us right? I've proven that to you? I've reassured you enough? Because I don't want you to be worrying about that. You and I, we're together forever, yeah? You're it for me. Nothing the paps or media say or do will change that for me. I don't care if they follow me for the rest of my life. I don't care if I need ten bodyguards every time I go out. I'm in this until the end and I will support you vigorously everyday. In anything you want to do okay? I love you. You're my darlin' after all." Niall said with a smile and a wink.

"Thank you," Harry whispered, his lips trembling as he struggled to keep from crying "Thank you."

They spent the rest of their time at the restaurant eating a delicious meal and sharing a dessert. The head chef came to thank them personally for coming once they were done, and not for the first time, Niall was in awe of the power the name Harry Styles held. Well...Harry Styles-Horan now.

It was late when they left, going for eleven o'clock but Harry called for Dylan, his personal guard, to meet them at the restaurant and they were able to take a leisurely walk through Madison Square Park, enjoying the crisp fall air of late October. Nobody bothered them and Dylan walked quite a distance behind them, giving them their privacy. It was a good thing he did because half way through the walk, Niall started murmuring in Harry's ear all the things he was going to do to him when they got back to their hotel. Harry was hard by the time they got back and was very grateful he was wearing a long coat that covered everything.

As soon as the hotel door closed, they crashed their lips together and started to make their way through the suite, frantically removing coats and clothes on their way to the bedroom. It was slow going because they refused to stop kissing and their legs kept getting tangled together nearly sending them toppling to the floor at least three times. Eventually Harry got fed up and grabbed Niall around the waist, his hands slipping down over his arse to lift him up so he could wrap his legs around Harry's waist.

"Fuck that's so hot," Niall muttered breathlessly, squeezing his thighs around Harry's waist and making him moan "Gonna fuck you so good darlin'."

Harry nipped at Niall's lip as they crashed through the door to the bedroom. They somehow made it to the bed where Harry threw Niall down onto the mattress and quickly rid himself of the rest of his clothes before starting in on Niall's. He reached for Niall's dress pants and boxers, pulling them off at the same time, enjoying the sight of his husbands naked body on the bed before him. He wanted to taste every inch of it but there was no time for that tonight. They were both too frantic, too hot for each other to slow it down. Tonight was going to be fast and hard and just the thought of it had Harry grabbing at the base of his throbbing cock.

"Come here, darlin'" Niall motioned him down onto the bed "Are you gonna open yourself up for me? Hmm? Let me watch you? See how sexy you are?"

Harry bit his lip and nodded, reaching over Niall for the lube and condoms they left on the bedside table the night before. Harry briefly thinks of whoever had to clean their room this morning and see that stuff lying there and vows to remember to leave an even larger tip than normal.

He quickly got to work, pouring some lube out on his fingers and kneeling up over Niall with one knee on either side of Niall's thighs. He began to finger himself, staring down at Niall from underneath his eyelashes. He made sure to move his hips in slow circles as his fingers moved inside of him faster, and faster, finding his prostate and making his back arch from the pleasure.

Niall watched him the whole time, his stare so intense, Harry felt like it could have burned a hole through him. His hand was working over his own cock and his breathing began to speed up the faster Harry went. Finally, when Harry was ready, he rolled the condom onto Niall's cock and immediately sunk down on it, wasting no time. They were both horny and hot for it, there'd be time for slow love making later.

"You never disappoint, do you?" Niall murmured as his hands came up to grip Harry's hips "Always put on a show for me. Sexiest man I've ever seen."

"It's all for you. Always wanna be good for you," Harry bit down on his lip again and started to swivel his hips, slowly riding his husband and picking up a rhythm "You're always so good to me, treat me like I'm the most important person in the world. Just wanna be good to you right back."

"You are, darlin'. You take care of me so good. Not just physically but emotionally as well. God," Niall started snapping his hips up, meeting Harry thrust for thrust "Fuck, you look so good like this."

Harry moaned and leaned down a bit, his palms flat on Niall's chest as he began to frantically fuck himself on Niall's cock. Niall's grip on Harry's hips got tighter, so tight there would be a bruise and he knows his husband will spend ample time staring at them in the mirror in the morning. Loves to be marked up.

"God, I'm so close already!" Harry cried out, his breathing becoming laboured the faster he moved. Niall was moving just as fast, the bed banging against the wall at this point "Fuck! Niall. Please. Can't-"

Niall didn't need to hear anymore. He knew what Harry needed. Their bodies and minds completely in sync. He digs his fingers into Harry's hips and roughly turns them over so that Niall is on top. Harry cries out and tightens his legs around Niall and then Niall slams into his husband fast, three times, his orgasm hitting him full force and has him screaming out Niall's name.

Niall continued to thrust hard as Harry kept coming and when he himself started spilling into the condom, he buried his face in Harry's sweaty neck and moaned Harry's name over and over again until both their bodies stilled.

"I love you," Harry whispered, pressing a kiss to Niall's sweaty forehead.

"I love you, too, darlin'. You're my everything. Don't ever forget that." Niall said, pressing a kiss to Harry's shoulder.

"I never will."

  
~~~

  
A lot happened the week Harry's album was released. He was busy doing press in London, his album was predicted to debut at number one, they got word from their surrogate that the IVF worked and they'd be expecting a baby in June, and Finn got sick.

Harry had been doing interviews all day and when he got home late in the evening, Niall was rocking Finn in the rocking chair in the nursery, softly singing over the whimpers of their Son.

"What happened? What's wrong?" Harry charged into the room, his worried eyes locking on to Niall's.

Niall rubbed his hand slowly in circles over Finn's back "Poor little Bub is feeling a bit poorly. Low grade fever and I suspect a sore throat. He grimaces a bit when he drinks his juice."

"Oh no," Harry crouched down and ran a finger over Finn's arm. Finn opened his eyes and looked at Harry sadly.

"Do you want to go with Papa for a bit?" Niall asked quietly, his lips brushing against Finn's temple "Have some cuddles with Papa?"

Finn whined and reached his arm out for Harry, whimpering "Papa. My Papa."

"Yes, that's your Papa," Niall chuckled and kissed his sons forehead before standing up and gently handing their son to Harry.

"Oh my baby boy," Harry cooed as he cuddled Finn into his chest and kissed the top of his head "He's a little warm but not too bad, yeah? I don't think I need to go into panic mode."

"Definitely not darlin'" Niall chuckled "He's okay. We just need to keep an eye on him. I gave him some medicine after dinner, about an hour ago and he just came out of a cool bath and we were cuddling when you came home."

Harry nodded, concern still evident on his face but he wasn't too worried, not when he knew his husband was here and had everything under control "He seemed okay this morning? When did he get sick?"

"Lottie said he felt a bit warm around one this afternoon. She knows what to do in these situations but she called me at work anyway, just to let me know and make sure I was okay with her giving him some medicine. I told her it was fine and to call me if he got worse so I could come home and bring him to the Doctor if need be. He never did get any worse. She texted me a few times, just so I'd know he was fine. Then when I got home I took over as usual. She offered to stay but he's not that sick. I figured he and I could have some quiet daddy and son time," Niall smiled fondly at his son.

"He does love his time with Daddy," Harry smiled down at his son.

"He asked for you a couple times actually. It's funny how he gets in these moods and sometimes wants you or sometimes wants me. He's cute, our little one."

"Can you believe he'll be two in a couple months? Time goes by so fast. Seems like it was just yesterday we were in Dublin visiting him in the NICU everyday." Harry remembers.

"We'll have to start decorating a room for him downstairs soon. We'll have our new little one next year," Niall reminded Harry "Rory wants him in the room across from his. I picture the two of them awake in the middle of the night playing cars or something. Sneaky little buggers."

"Oh yeah, I can already tell Finn is going to be cheeky just like his brother. God help us!"

"We'll always have an interesting household anyway!" Niall laughed "I think he's out darlin'" Niall pointed at Finn "Let's just put him in his cot in his nappy. No need to dress him. Keep him cool."

Harry whined, not wanting to let go of his Son. He knew he had to, though, because keeping him in his arms only produces body heat and he needs to stay cool, so he lay him down in his cot and they both kissed him goodnight before heading across the hall to their own bedroom.

"I'm just going to change my clothes real quick. It's only nine, we don't have to go to bed yet. We can watch some telly if you want?" Harry said as he began to unbutton his shirt.

"We could, yeah, but I think I'd rather go to bed early," Niall said.

"Okay. You're probably exhausted after all day at work and taking care of Finn when you got home."

"Nope," Niall says, popping the 'p' "I'm not tired at all."

Harry turned to look at Niall, a look of confusion on his face "Then why do you want to go to bed- ohhhhhh"

"Yeah. Oh," Niall grinned "Get naked."

That moment, was the fastest Niall had ever seen Harry get out of his skinny jeans.

 

~~~

  
Four months later, in March, Harry was touring the UK and Ireland before doing a few dates around Europe in April, when Rory got the news- he was called up to the first team and would be playing in that coming Saturday's match against Manchester City. Harry had a show in Aberdeen Friday night and didn't even have to think twice before telling Rory he's hopping on a plane right after the show to take the short flight back to London. Thankfully he didn't have a show Saturday night but he wouldn't have cared if he did. There's no way in hell he would miss this so if he had a show it would have to be postponed to a later date. Family comes first.

Thankfully that didn't have to happen and Harry now found himself sitting next to Niall and Anna, barely able to stay still as they waited for the match to start. Bobby was sitting on Niall's other side and was already drinking beer and being the loud Irishman that he is. Maura, Greg and Theo were there, too, along with Harry's parents and sister. Everyone loves Rory so much and they weren't about to miss his first ever match.

When the players finally came out onto the pitch, Emirates Stadium erupted in noise and chaos, fans already excited and rearing to go. It reminds Harry of the noise the fans make when he plays a show in a stadium and he wonders if Rory has the same overwhelming feeling Harry gets when there are so many people cheering and it's so loud you can't even think.

"Do you think Rory is nervous?" Harry leaned in close to Niall to speak in his ear.

"No!" Niall yelled and pointed out at the pitch. When Harry looked he could see Rory for the first time, standing in line next to his teammates. He's talking to one of the defenders standing next to him and they're laughing about something "This is where he belongs, where he's most comfortable! He's having the time of his life and the match hasn't even started yet!"

Harry grins at Niall's words, unable to take his eyes off their son. Soon it's time for the coin toss and the captains shake hands and they're ready to go. Harry might have a heart attack.

The whistle blows and then they're off, Rory getting the ball almost immediately. He can play two positions but today he's playing as the attacking midfielder as opposed to the striker position. Apparently Arsenal preferred him in the midfield position, telling him his tactical awareness and ability to control the ball were skills they had been lacking in other players in the position over the past few years. Without someone who is a skilled attacker who can control and distribute the ball, someone with great decision making skills, Arsenal had gone a bit down hill over the years. They believed Rory possessed all those skills and would be the best in the game within a few years. It was very high praise and Rory had come home after practice that day with a stunned look on his face, scaring Harry and Niall for a moment until they finally found out why he was so shocked.

It didn't take long for Arsenal to mount a good attack. In the twenty-second minute, Rory had set up a beautiful play. Finding one of the wingers deep, he executed a perfect pass and the winger sent a cross flying past the goal. The striker found it with his head but headed the ball just over the top of the goal. It was so, so close.

"Jesus Christ! Did you see that?" Bobby is on his feet screaming and giddy, acting more like a teenager than a man in his sixties.

Niall throws his head back, laughing at his Dad but he's really no better. In fact they're all going crazy and Harry would pity the people sitting behind them if not for the fact that they were just as exuberant, singing and drinking beer and making just as much noise.

Harry turns to Anna who is looking quite beautiful this afternoon with her long hair pulled back in a ponytail and wearing a black pair of skinny jeans with her O'Brien jersey. Her smile is radiant and her eyes are bright as they follow Rory all over the pitch. Harry had really become very fond of her. Loving the way she treated Rory, like he was the most special person in the world, and to Anna, he probably was.

"He's doing great so far, yeah?" Harry signed after tapping Anna on the shoulder. He could sign now. He and Niall learned, wanting to be able to communicate even better with their sons girlfriend. She was so important to him, so she was important to Harry and Niall as well.

"He's brilliant!" Anna signed back, a huge smile lighting up her face "I'm so proud of him."

"Me too," Harry signed, turning his head back to the match when there was a roar from the crowd. A Manchester City player had tripped an Arsenal player, resulting in a free kick for Arsenal.

"Good chance for a goal here," Niall commented, clapping his hands along with the rest of the crowd.

It's true, it is a good chance. Not as good as a penalty kick but the foul was committed not far outside the penalty area so the distance to the goal wasn't astronomical. He watches as the players for both teams get into their positions and holds his breath when he notices the captain of the team talking into Rory's ear. When he's finished talking, he taps Rory on the bum and jogs off, leaving Rory to be the one to take the kick.

"Oh my God!" Niall screams next to him, his hand gripping Harry's arm tight. "Oh my God he's taking the kick."

"Not surprising is it?" Bobby leans over Niall so Harry could hear him too "That lad has more power in his legs than a horse! He's brilliant at these!"

"Okay, okay! Shut up! He's going for it!" Niall waves his father away frantically and they all watch with bated breath as the whistle blows and Rory jogs toward ball. He swings his right leg back, then it's pushing forward and connecting hard with the ball. Harry gasps and digs his nails into Niall's arm as the ball soars in a beautiful arc over the wall of defending players and curves down just in time to hit the back of the goal in the top right corner. He scored. Their boy scored.

"It's in!!! That went in!!" Harry screams as he jumps up and down. Anna is jumping up and down beside him and Harry grabs her, pulling her toward himself and Niall, then the four of them (Harry, Niall, Anna and Bobby) are piling on top of each other, very nearly toppling over into a giant heap.

"That's our boy!" Bobby screams "That's our boy!!"

Harry can do nothing but laugh as he celebrates with his family. They all look on as the players celebrate on the pitch, piling on top of Rory to congratulate him. It's surreal watching it all.Harry has watched many football matches in his life, seen many celebrations on the pitch but none as important as this one. His son had just scored his first goal in the premier league.

The match remained 1-0 until the seventy-eighth minute when Arsenal scored again, pretty much insuring a victory. When it was finally over after injury time, the score remained 2-0 and Arsenal had won.

"Well. There it is! Our sons first match in the books," Niall's smile is wide, his eyes sparkling and Harry is so fucking in love with him all he can do is pull Niall into his arms and hug him tight, lifting his feet off the ground and burying his face in his neck.

"I'm so proud of him," Harry says quietly into Niall's ear, choking back tears "I love him so much. I'm so, so happy for him."

"Me too, darlin'" Niall squeezes Harry tight then runs his hand up and down Harry's back a few times before Harry puts him down "What do you say we go back and wait for him outside the locker room hmm? He said he'd meet us there."

"Yeah let's go," Harry reached for Niall's hand and they made their way back toward the locker room, showing security their passes on the way. The rest of the family followed behind, loud and exuberant, and probably half drunk.

There were a few people already wandering around near the locker room, other family members and people who worked with the team. Some of them looked up to see what the commotion was and Harry knew right away he was recognized by two women who appeared to be girlfriends or wives of two of the Arsenal players. Their eyes widened and their jaws dropped, it couldn't really be any more obvious than that.

"Hello," Harry smiled at them politely, his arm sliding across Niall's waist, tucking him into his side. Niall snuggles close to him, wrapping his own arm around Harry's waist and slipping a hand in the back pocket of Harry's jeans. They don't even think about it really, their bodies just fit together seamlessly, the two of them never content unless they're touching in some way. Bobby makes fun of them tirelessly.

"Hi! Wow. It's- I'm a fan. It's really nice to meet you," The brunette speaks up, smiling shyly "Oh! I'm Jessica. This is Hayley," She gestures to the blonde next to her.

"I'm a fan, too. It's so great to meet you," Hayley says to both Harry and Niall "My God. Narry is actually standing in front of me. Being all cute. I might swoon! "

"There's no need for that," Bobby speaks up from behind them "They're both just normal idiots, I can assure you."

The girls eyes widened comically, making Harry and Niall laughed "It's okay," Niall says "That's my dad. Don't mind him."

The girls simply nod their heads then Harry and Niall get pulled into a conversation with them and some other people. They take a lot of selfies but they don't mind. Everyone is being calm and respectful and Harry truly loved meeting fans of his.

They're so caught up in chatting that they don't even notice Rory coming out of the locker room, laughing with a couple of his teammates until the rest of their family is cheering (especially Bobby) and surrounding him to hug him and congratulate him.

Niall and Harry stay back and watch with huge smiles on their faces as everyone congratulates their son. They give Bobby some time to fawn over him and Maura and Anne time to coo at him and they give him time to kiss his girlfriend and have a few minutes talking privately with her and then it's finally their turn. Rory lifts his head, looking around for them and when he sees them he smiles wide, quickly signing something to Anna before jogging over to them.

"You were brilliant. We knew you would be," Niall says to his son, a bright smile on his face "We're both very proud of you."

"So proud!" Harry chimes in, nodding his head and smiling.

"Thank you. Thanks for coming. It means a lot," Rory says, lifting his arms and pulling his Dad's into a fierce hug.

"Of course we came," Harry scoffed "Your first match could have been in Alaska and we'd be there."

"Me too!" Bobby says, raising his hand in the air briefly "There's really good fishing in Alaska apparently."

"Oh my God," Rory roles his eyes at his grandfather and laughs along with everyone else, including some of his teammates who stopped to see what the commotion was.

"This your family O'Brien?" A man Harry knows is named Daniel asks. He's one of the most popular players in England and at thirty years old he's still going strong, showing no signs of slowing down and has been Arsenal's captain for the past three seasons.

"Yep!" Rory laughs "That charming fisherman is my grandfather. This is my Dad," Rory points at Niall "And my Pop," Rory points at Harry then he quickly introduces everyone else, Daniel taking the time to shake everyone's hands

"Alright. I'm sorry but, I know for a fact that Harry Styles is English so why the fuck can't you play for the English National Team?" Daniel asks, glancing at Anne and Maura apologetically because he cursed.

"I never said I can't. I said I won't. I'm Irish. End of discussion," Rory says, a look of amusement on his face.

"But your father is English! You qualify!" Daniel throws his hands up, exasperated "At this rate, England still won't have won anything by the time I'm dead!"

"Probably not but Ireland will because we have Rory now!!" Kieran, another teammate yells, throwing an arm over Rory's shoulder happily.

"I hate both of you " Daniel says but he's smiling and shaking his head, clearly fond of the young men on his team.

"So, some of the lads invited me out for a pint, to celebrate my first match. If that's okay with you? Did you need me for anything?" Rory asked Niall and Harry.

"You go out with your teammates. We'll see you when you get home or in the morning," Niall said.

Rory smiled and turned to Anna, signing "Do you want to go out for pints with the lads?"

"Absolutely!" Anna beamed, slipping her arm around Rory's waist and kissing his cheek "Wouldn't miss it."

Everyone said goodbye to Rory, then they all went back to Harry and Niall's house where they'd all be staying for the night, except for Gemma who had her own flat.

"It was a good day, yeah?" Niall crowded in behind Harry, wrapping his arms around his waist as they waited for the kettle to boil to make tea for everyone.

"The very best," Harry smiled softly, tilting his head back to nuzzle into Niall's neck "I think there'll be plenty more, too."

"Oh I think we can count on that darlin'" Niall murmured "We can count on that."

  
~~~

  
Harry and Niall were woken up in the wee hours of the morning on June tenth to a phone call from their surrogate. She was in labour! Of course Harry and Niall jumped out of bed to rush to the hospital, stopping to wake Rory up so he could look after Finn when he woke in the morning. He said he would and as soon as Finn was awake and had breakfast they were going to head to the hospital to hopefully meet their new brother or sister.

They made it to the hospital in half an hour and a nurse told them they could suit up and head into the delivery room. The labour was progressing quickly and Melanie could start pushing at any moment. Harry and Niall could barely contain their excitement at hearing that news. They were so blessed to have a surrogate who didn't mind them being in the delivery room. They told her she didn't have to do it, they'd understand her not wanting two guys she doesn't know all that well watching her give birth. She just laughed and said she didn't care, it was their baby and they should see him or her born.

Once she started pushing, it didn't take long for their baby to arrive. They sat holding their breaths as the final push was made and the Doctor held up their baby in front of them with a huge smile on her face "It's a girl!"

Harry was crying immediately. A little girl! He's wanted to have a baby girl for as long as he can remember and now he finally has one with the most amazing man in the world.

"She's a bit messy right now but do you want a minute with her before we clean her up and check her over?" The Doctor asked kindly.

"Please," Harry managed to choke out and then the Doctor was passing the baby over to him and Niall was walking around the bed to stand next to his husband.

"Hiiii," Harry murmured, his voice full of awe as he cradled his newborn baby girl. She was still covered in bodily fluids but she was the most beautiful little girl Harry has ever seen. No doubt about it. His heart swelled with love as he stared down at her, watching her wiggle around and screw her face up like she was displeased about something. Probably losing the warmth of the womb.

"She's beautiful," Niall choked out as he knelt down next to Harry and gently cupped their daughter's head "Hi little lovey."

"Oh God, Niall. My heart feels like it's going to explode out of my chest. She's incredible. So beautiful," Harry whispered, his eyes never leaving his daughter's face.

Niall reaches in and gently lifts Harry's chin so he could look into his eyes "So are you, darlin'. The most beautiful thing I've ever seen is you holding our children. It's a blessing to get to share this with you. I love you."

Fuck. Now Harry was crying even harder "I love you, too."

"Okay boys," A Nurse comes up in front of them and smiles "We're going to take her for just a bit. Get her all cleaned up for her daddies and get her all checked out. It won't take long and I promise to bring her straight to you as soon as we're done."

Harry didn't want to give her up but he knew the faster they checked her out and cleaned her up, the faster he'd get her in his arms again. So he hands her over and wraps himself up in Niall, kissing his lips several times before they both turned to check on Melanie.

"Congratulations. She's beautiful," Melanie smiled tiredly "She's very lucky to have you both."

"Thank you. Oh God, thank you. We wouldn't have her if not for you. We owe you so much," Harry cried, squeezing her hand in his.

"No. You don't owe me anything. The look on your faces when you saw her is why I wanted to do this for you. It's why I want to do this for my brother someday. Just be good to her, yeah? Give her the best life and all the love you can."

"We will. She'll be the most loved little girl in the world," Niall says with a big smile.

"Good. That's what I want to hear. Now go wait for your daughter! She'll be ready soon." Melanie said.

"Do you want us to stay with you? Are you okay? Do you need anything?" Harry asks, his eyes roaming all over her face.

"Nah. I'm good. I've gotta do this whole after birth thing and then they'll clean me up and I'll sleep for a day," Melanie laughed "Go on. We'll talk soon."

Harry and Niall both nodded and thanked her again, profusely, then they followed a nurse down the hall to the nursery where their daughter would be shortly. They're told they can wait there and as soon as their daughter is brought to the nursery they can go in and see her. The nurse fits them with wristbands that will be identical to one their daughter will be wearing and then she tells them congratulations again and leaves the two of them alone to wait.

"Niall," Harry's voice is barely above a whisper "We have a daughter. A little girl. She's ours. We get to take her home and take care of her, love her, protect her. I'm so happy I feel like I can't breathe."

"I know," Niall takes both Harry's hands in his and laces their fingers together "She looks like you, ya know. Dark hair like yours, pouty lips. I can't wait to see if she has dimples."

Harry smiles wide, a giggle escaping his lips and making Niall laugh and pull him in close. He wraps his arms around Harry and slowly sways their bodies back and forth "Niall. Do you know how many pretty dresses we can get for her? We can even make tiny little headscarves so she can match me! Oh my God and the shoes! Little pink trainers and tiny black boots! I can't! I can't even handle it right now!"

Niall bursts out laughing, the sound filling the long hallway "Christ H! You sound like you're getting her ready for her Vogue cover already."

"Certainly not!" Harry scoffs "She's not going to be on the cover of a magazine where all the boys can look at her!"

"She's half an hour old, darlin'. I think we have twenty years or so to worry about that," Niall chuckles.

Harry opens his mouth to say something but the words get caught in his throat as he sees the nurse from the delivery room walk into the nursery with a little bundle in her arms "Niall," He whispers, stepping out of his husbands embrace and rushing to the window "There she is!"

Niall steps up beside him, gazing in through the window as the nurse lays their baby girl down in a tiny, plastic bed. When she lifts her head, she spots Niall and Harry and heads for the door with a huge smile on her face "Come on in boys. She's all cleaned up and waiting for her daddies. Everything checked out. Strong, healthy heart and lungs and her reflexes are perfect. She's perfect! A beautiful little girl!"

Harry and Niall can do nothing but grip each other's hands and smile wide as they follow the nurse over to their baby girl. She lays on her back wrapped in a pink blanket with tiny half moons and stars on it. On her head there's a matching pink hat keeping her precious little head warm. They both stare down at her in awe, watching her blink her eyes open and closed and listening to the quiet cooing noises she makes.

"We'll keep her here in the nursery over night. It's just standard procedure but if no medical issues crop up then you'll be able to take her home in the morning. In the meantime, you can visit with her as much as you want until visiting hours are over." The nurse says with a smile.

Niall reaches down into the bed and slips his pinkie finger in between their daughter's fingers, smiling wide when she immediately closes her fist around it "Do you have an empty room we could use?" He asked the nurse without taking his eyes off the little girl "Our sons and probably a few friends will want to come see her. Usually the Mother gives birth and everyone visits the baby in her room but...our situation is a bit different. Obviously."

"Of course. I'll take you to a room where you can have some privacy. We can wheel the bed right over there. Follow me!" The nurse immediately jumps into action, grabbing the bed on the sides and wheeling it toward the door. Niall runs ahead to open it for her then they follow her down the hall to an empty room. It's a regular room where a new mother would go after giving birth to rest until she and her baby were released. Once the bed is pushed inside, the nurse smiles at them and says to come get her if they need anything and then they're left alone with their baby for the first time.

"Go on, daddy. You haven't held your daughter yet." Harry stands behind Niall, bending his head to talk quietly into his ear "I want to get some pictures."

Niall chuckles and wipes under his eyes to clear the tears away that were threatening to spill over, then he reaches into the bed and scoops his daughter up, one hand supporting her head and the other on her bum. He takes a seat in the rocking chair in the room and stares at her in awe, taking in every feature and seeing Harry in her right away. She was barely an hour old and he knew her features would always be changing but even right away he can see she has Harry's lips and the shape of his eyes. It's too soon to see if she'll have green eyes but he hopes she does.

"Thank you," He whispers, talking to Harry even though he never takes his eyes off their daughter.

"What?" Harry stops taking pictures and gives Niall a funny look "I haven't done anything."

"You have," Niall says softly, brushing his knuckle over their daughter's soft cheek "This little girl, she's yours Harry. She has your blood running through her veins and your genes. I've wanted to have a child of yours for so long and now it's happened. You've made it happen and I'm so happy. I love her so much. Thank you, Harry. Thank you."

"Oh baby," Harry smiles fondly at his husband and reaches down to cup his cheek "I know how you feel. I couldn't wait to be the father to your kids someday. Kids with your blue eyes and bright smile. When Rory came along- well you know I fell in love with him immediately. He's you. Through and through and I love him more than life itself."

Niall finally took his eyes off their little girl long enough to look up at Harry and grin "We have a beautiful family don't we? Three beautiful children, some have my genes, this little one has yours and who knows what genes our next child will have? All I know for sure is it won't matter. We'll love all of our children the same."

"We definitely will," Harry agrees, staring lovingly down at his husband and daughter.

"Are we going to name this little lovey?" Niall says after a moment of silence.

"Little lovey. That's so cute. I don't know where you get these names. Finn is Bub and now we have little lovey," Harry giggles "I love that you do that."

"I don't know where I come up with these names," Niall chuckles "They just come out. As for a real name, though, when I proposed to you, you said you wanted our first little girl to be called Nori. Do you still want that? Does she look like a Nori?"

"I can't believe you remembered that!" Harry looks down at Niall in shock.

"Of course I did, darlin'. You and I have had hundreds of conversations over the years and I remember them all. Some of the best moments in our relationship have been when we stay up all night talking. Just getting to hold you in our bed and listen to you talk about anything and everything. So, yeah, I remember Nori." Niall says.

"God. I really do love you so much, Niall, and yes, if you like the name Nori then I would love to name our daughter that. Nori Anne Horan maybe? Do you think your Mum would be upset with that?" Harry asked.

"Nah," Niall shook his head "She's always saying nothing goes with Maura so she'd be fine with it. I love it, H. It's perfect."

"Okay," Harry picked his phone up again, beaming "I'm going to text Rory. He said he was bringing Finn after he woke up and they ate breakfast. I'll let him know where we are and that he has a new sibling. We'll make him wait until he gets here to find out he's got a sister."

Harry got busy writing a text to Rory and to their families to let them all know their baby has arrived while Niall sat quietly talking to his daughter as they rocked back and forth in the rocking chair. When Harry was done, he continued taking pictures again, this time making Niall actually look up and smile for some of them. Immediately he couldn't wait to get them up on Twitter, wanting to show off his beautiful husband and daughter but he didn't want their families to see her for the first time on Twitter so he decided to wait a few days until the family got a chance to visit.

Eventually, Niall handed Nori to Harry and took Harry's phone to take the first pictures of their little girl with her Papa. They were perfect and as Niall stood there taking picture after picture of his husband and his little lovey, he had to stop and take in some slow, deep breaths. He was so happy his heart felt like it might explode and it was a bit overwhelming. No matter how long he and Harry are together and how many kids they have, he'll never get used to the fierce love he has for them all.

When Niall finishes taking pictures, they decide to move over to the couch by the window so they could cuddle together and stare down at their daughter. Niall wrapped his arm around Harry's shoulder and pulled him into his side, Harry's head resting on his shoulder as they watched Nori sleep. It was quiet, it was content, it was perfect.

An hour later, when there's a soft knock on the door, they both look up to see Rory walk in with a babbling Finn in his arms. He makes eye contact with Niall and Harry, a huge smile on his face as he shuts the door quietly behind him.

"Look Finny," Rory whispers, interrupting Finn's babbling. He points toward Niall and Harry and they can't help but giggle when they see Finn whip his head around and arch his neck to see what Rory is pointing at.

"Daddy! Papa!" Finn squeals, his whole face lighting up and his arms stretching out toward them, wanting to get down.

"No, Finny, look," Rory points again at the little bundle in Harry's arms.

"What I look at, Rowwy?" Finn whispers, his eyes wide as he looks around the room.

Niall snorts and turns his head, pressing his chin against the top of Harry's head and biting his lip to keep from giggling too much. Finn was honestly the cutest thing he'd ever seen. His personality was developing more and more everyday and he always kept Niall and Harry on their toes with that sparkle in his eye that told them he was going to be every bit as cheeky as his older brother.

"It's still so cute that he can't say Rory properly," Harry whispers, his body shaking slightly with laughter.

Rory puts Finn down onto the floor and walks with him over to their parents, crouching down to Finn's height and pointing at the pink blanket again "Right here, Finny. We have a new baby...sister?" Rory looks up at his parents, arching an eyebrow at them.

"Yes," Niall confirms with a smile, reaching out and plucking Finn up and into his arms, seating the two year old on his lap "You have a new baby sister."

Finn screws up his face, his brow furrowing as he tries to understand. He looks over at the little girl in Harry's arms then back up at Niall "Dolly?"

The three adults break out into laughter and Niall squeezes Finn in his arms, kissing all over his face until he's giggling and trying to push Niall away with his tiny little hands "Daddy no!! No mo' kisses. You have mo' later."

"What if I want more now?" Niall asks, his fingers gently moving over Finn's belly, tickling him and making him squirm and giggle loudly for a moment before he stops and tries to give Niall a stern look.

"No, Daddy. Finny said no! No mo' kisses now," Finn wags his little finger at Niall's face and puckers his lips in an adorable pout.

"Okay," Niall concedes, a huge smile on his face as he takes in the unbelievable cuteness of his son. He pulls Finn up onto his feet so that he's standing on his thighs and hugs him close, his heart swooping when he feels tiny arms wrap around his neck "No more kisses right now but save some for me for later, yeah? I love you, Finnegan."

"Wove you, daddy," Finn responds quietly, his lips brushing against Niall's neck.

"Do you want to meet your new baby sister? Remember me and Papa told you you would be a big brother just like Rory?" Niall holds Finn away from his body enough to look at him.

"Yes," Finn nodded seriously "I pway with sister because I big brother like Rowwy?"

"Yeah Bub," Niall kisses his forehead gently "As soon as she's old enough you will be able to play. She'll sleep a lot at first but Papa, Rory and I will play with you."

"Okay," Finn says easily, bending down to look at the sleeping baby in Harry's arms "She sleepy now?"

"She is but you can give her a kiss if you want," Niall says. Finn nods his head so Niall holds on to him so he doesn't fall into Harry's lap when he leans over and then (thank god) Rory gets it on video as Finn kisses his baby sister on the cheek and says "I wove you" in his sweet little voice.

"Do you want to meet your sister?" Harry says to Rory, tears in his eyes after watching the sweet display of affection from their little boy.

"Of course I do," Rory smiles and carefully takes the newborn from Harry, settling her in the crook of his arm. "What's her name?"

"Nori," Harry smiles softly, brushing his fingers through Rory's hair and pressing a kiss to his forehead "Nori Anne Horan."

"Hi Nori," Rory whispers, smiling fondly down at her "I'm your big brother. Welcome to our family."

Harry grins widely and grabs Finn from Niall's arms, holding him close and rocking him back and forth "How's my baby boy this morning? I missed seeing you wake up today."

"I good," Finn smiles sweetly at Harry "Rowwy make cakes fo' bwekkie. I make a mess and need bath."

"He made pancakes?" Harry gasps "How lucky! I didn't get any pancakes."

"It's okay, Papa," Finn says matter of fact "Rowwy make you cakes when go home."

Harry can't help but giggle at his son. He loves their little boy more than anything, would do anything for him. He'd do anything for every single person currently in the room. They were his family. His incredibly gorgeous husband, who loved him unconditionally, who stood by him through thick and thin and their three beautiful children.

When Jack died, Harry honestly thought he could never love again. His hopes and dreams of having a family one day, disappeared. Then Niall came into his life and everything changed. He fell more deeply in love than he ever had been with Jack and together he and Niall braved the world, braved Harry's crazy career in the spotlight and only got stronger and stronger every year.

Now, with his youngest son in his arms babbling away to Rory, and his oldest son holding their brand new little girl, he turns his head and locks eyes with his husband. No words need to be said. He can see everything he needs to in Niall's eyes. The love, respect, adoration and happiness. The promise of many more years together and many more happy times. The promise that whatever comes next for them, be it good or bad, they'll face it and get through it together.

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for sticking around for this long. I hope you enjoyed it. The epilogue should be up within the week then the series will officially be over :(
> 
> If you want to leave comments and kudos, they will be very much appreciated!
> 
> Thank you!


	4. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The conclusion to The Broken Series
> 
> A look into the lives of Harry, Niall and their children fifteen years later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is, the final part of the Broken Series!
> 
> I want to thank everyone immensely for reading this. I loved every second of writing the series and it means a lot to me that so many people read it and took the time to leave kudos and comments. 
> 
> I'll be writing more stories in the future. I hope you check them out!
> 
> :)

 

 

15 Years Later

 

 

  
Harry slowly wakes up on a lazy Sunday morning to the soft press of his husbands lips against his neck and his sweet whispered words in his ear.

"Good Morning," Harry mumbles, a slow smile spreading across his face as his eyes slowly open and come into focus. He's met with the sight of Niall's bright blue eyes and magnificent smile that still makes his stomach swoop after over twenty years together. Twenty- three years to be exact, though they did know each other for a year before they got together as a couple.

"Hi," Niall's eyes crinkled when he smiled and there were a few lines around his mouth but other than that he hadn't changed much in fifteen years.

"What time is it?" Harry asks, turning his head to squint his eyes at the clock on his bedside table "Is it still dark outside?"

"It's just getting light out. It's a bit after six," Niall murmurs before he gently kisses Harry's lips, tugging at them with his teeth, nipping and sucking until Harry woke up enough to respond and kissed him back, his hand curling around the back of Niall's neck.

"Why are you waking me up just after six on a Sunday?" Harry asks when they pull back from the kiss a little so Niall can mouth along his jaw "Not that I'm complaining right now."

"Love you," Niall nipped his way along until he reached Harry's ear and kissed his neck right below it, making Harry shiver "Wanna make love to you before our lovely children wake up and make that impossible."

"Mmm," Harry hummed, closing his eyes and arching his neck so Niall could work his way down more. His hands slide down over Niall's bare back and he pulls him over so he's in between his legs, their naked chests pushed together "I love the way you think."

"Yeah?" Niall smirked up at Harry as he made his way down over his collarbones and over his chest, sucking a nipple into his mouth "Didn't get enough yesterday, hmm?"

Harry looked down at Niall with a smile on his face and a twinkle in his eye "Neither did you apparently."

Niall laughed against Harry's skin and picked his head up, looking at Harry delightedly "Touché."

Harry grins and runs his fingers up into Niall's brown hair, not even a hint of grey appearing yet, even though Niall was fifty years old. Harry wasn't surprised. When Niall was thirty-five he looked about twenty-five and Rory's friends thought Niall was his brother instead of his Dad. Now that he's fifty, he doesn't look a day over forty. The man ages well. Harry isn't complaining. He quite enjoys the view.

"Darlin'," Niall kissed down his chest and over his abs while Harry was running his fingers through his hair "Can I eat you out? Get you loose for me?"

Harry moaned as Niall reached his boxers and started to pull them down his legs, exposing his hardening cock. He kicked his legs out when Niall rolled to the side, trying desperately to kick the duvet off the bed so he could roll over on his stomach. Niall was so, so good at rimming. Harry could practically feel the wet heat of his tongue before they've even started.

"Baby," Harry whined "Get this stupid blanket off me!"

Niall couldn't help but bark out a loud laugh and not for the first time Harry was thankful their kids bedrooms were down on the floor below them and not just down the hall "I'll take that as a yes then?" Niall asked with an amused look on his face. He pushed the blankets onto the floor and removed Harry's boxers the rest of the way off, allowing Harry to quickly roll over and give Niall complete access to his arse.

"It's a definite fucking yes!" Harry says, wiggling his pale, naked arse in front of Niall. "Is the door locked? Make sure it's locked. We don't need to scar our children for life."

Niall laughed loudly again and jumped off the bed, running to the door and locking it then running back to the bed and dropping his boxers on the floor before getting back between Harry's legs "Harry. Jesus. How many times have I seen you like this? Spread out for me? You're still so gorgeous. You still make my heart race. You still make me so hot."

"Yeah?" Harry sounded breathless "Show me, baby. Make me come."

Niall didn't respond. He simply got to work, running his hands over the rippling muscles of Harry's back and kissing the creamy skin on his shoulders. He always did this, took his time with Harry, getting him worked up and making him squirm. Harry would often whine about it and tell Niall to hurry up and make him come but really he loved it. Loved that Niall loved him enough to spend time on him, kissing every inch of his body and gently caressing his skin with his fingers.

Niall slowly worked his way down Harry's back, leaving open mouthed kisses over Harry's skin. He grazed his teeth over the dimples at the bottom of Harry's back, then sucked a mark there while Harry gasped and panted into his pillow.

"You like that don't you?" Niall murmured, his hot breath ghosting over the love bite, making goosebumps form all over Harry's skin.

Harry didn't answer, simply moaned into his pillow and arched his back slightly so that his arse came up off the bed a little. Niall chuckled softly, his hand moving down to smooth over one of Harry's cheeks, the callouses on Niall's fingers against his skin making him shiver.

"I love your arse, babe," Niall kneaded his fingers into Harry's flesh, letting his thumbs fall into the crack and slide down to Harry's hole, pressing just enough to illicit a filthy moan from him. "God. Look at you. So sexy."

"Niall..." Harry panted, his toes digging into the mattress "Fuck. Fuck! Please put your tongue on me. Please."

Of course Niall didn't. Not yet. He kissed both cheeks of Harry's arse first, then sucked another love bite before he finally spread Harry's cheeks and rubbed a spit slick finger over Harry's hole in circles. The feeling of being gently touched there, in such an intimate place, drove Harry mad. He might like it when Niall digs his fingers into his hips hard enough to leave bruises but when it comes to his rim he loves gentle.

"Yes," Harry murmured into the pillow, his hips starting to move a little as his cock completely hardened up. "Fuck, Niall. You're so good. So fucking good."

Niall hummed and continued to rub his finger in circles over Harry's rim while his other hand slowly caressed Harry's arse cheek, overloading him with some good stimulation. By the time Niall removed his finger and spread Harry's cheeks even more, Harry was rutting against the bed, seeking out friction for his cock. Niall pressed one hand against the small of Harry's back to still him, then he kissed Harry's arse cheek one last time before moving down and spreading Harry's cheeks open so he could kiss over his rim.

"Oh fuck!" Harry's voice went up an octave and his fingers gripped the pillow so hard he wondered if it would rip apart "Oh fuck, baby!"

Niall spread him open with both hands and kissed over his hole once, twice, three times, before swiping over it with his tongue. He did it slowly, sliding his hot tongue over Harry's hole over and over again before pulling back and blowing air on it. Harry was whimpering and digging his toes into the mattress while his fingers nearly tore the pillow apart.

"You sound incredible, darlin'. Just the sounds you make make me so hard," Niall said quietly, then he puckered his lips around Harry's hole, sucking gently before sticking his tongue out and delving it inside. He fucked Harry with his tongue over and over again until his husband was whimpering and begging for his cock.

"Please, God, please Niall. I can't hold on much longer. I need you. Please!" Harry begged, sounding completely wrecked.

Niall cursed and walked up the bed on his knees, ripping open the bedside table drawer and grabbing the lube. They rarely bothered with condoms anymore, both men not minding the feel of come in their arse and both men loving the intimacy of it. They really only used a condom when they were really horny and snuck off for a quickie. They knew they probably wouldn't have time for a shower and would probably have to wipe off real quick with a towel. They weren't about to have to spend all day with come leaking from their arse.

Uncapping the lube, Niall got back between Harry's legs and got to work stretching his husband as quick as he could, his own dick throbbing from watching his husband reacting to being rimmed. He needed to get inside his tight heat and fuck him until they both came.

"Can you turn over for me?" Niall murmured in Harry's ear some time later when he had Harry stretched enough "Need to see you."

Harry quickly rolled over, his green eyes shiny and bright as he looked up at Niall. He slipped his arms around Niall's neck and his legs around Niall's waist, pulling him down into a deep kiss that had them both panting for air when they broke apart.

"Christ," Niall cursed as he looked down at his husband. He gently cupped Harry's cheek, running his thumb over Harry's cheekbone right under his eye "You're the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. I can't even..."

"Shhh," Harry placed his index finger over Niall's lips to shush him "Fuck me, yeah? Want you so bad."

Niall swallowed thickly and nodded his head, reaching down to guide his cock to Harry's hole. He pressed in slowly, taking his time to make sure he didn't hurt Harry and when he was finally all the way in, he released a long breath and leaned down to rest his forehead against Harry's.

"I'll never get tired of this," Harry whispered between them, their lips so close together they were almost touching "You always feel so good, baby. I love you so much."

Niall began to move his hips, slowly at first then picking up speed as he thrust inside his husband "I love you so much, too, darlin'"

They didn't really say anything else after that. Niall lowered himself onto his forearms, bracketing Harry's head and pushing their chests close together. They kept eye contact, blue looking into green, their breaths mingling as Niall kept thrusting into Harry. They were both panting and there was the occasional moan or curse, but nothing else. Nothing needed to be said. It was all in their eyes when they looked at each other.

"I'm getting close, love," Harry panted some time later, after Niall had been repeatedly pounding into his prostate and swallowing his moans by kissing him.

"Me too, darlin'," Niall gasped, sucking in air after every hard thrust. There were beads of sweat on his forehead and his chest was damp under his chest hair.

Harry moaned and reached down between them to wrap a hand around his own cock, jerking it in time with Niall's thrusts. He tipped his head back, exposing his neck to Niall and Niall wasted no time nosing along the curve of Harry's neck and dragging his lips over the damp skin. Harry smelled like sweat and soap and just Harry and it drove Niall crazy.

"I'm gonna come-" Niall warned his husband as his hips started to stutter and his cock started to spill inside of Harry. He moaned into Harry's neck, his hot, heavy breaths leaving goosebumps on Harry's skin and Harry moaned along with him, continuing to jerk his cock until his body tensed up and he started to spill onto both their stomachs.

While they both came down from their orgasms, Niall held Harry's face in his hands and kissed gently all over it until he found Harry's lips and kissed him the best he could when they were both still breathing hard.

"I love you," Harry said quietly, when they were finally breathing normally again and the room was silent.

"I love you, too. So, so much. You're my everything, Harry. You and our children and grandchildren," Niall said as he brushed a finger over Harry's cheek, stopping to poke at Harry's dimple like he always did "I'll never stop telling you."

"You never have. For over twenty years now. It's the same for me. I love all of you more than I thought I could love anybody," Harry murmured, a smile lighting up his face.

Niall smiled, too, then he kissed Harry one last time before slowly pulling out of him and helping him up so they could get into the shower together.

They spent fifteen minutes soaping each other up and washing each other's hair while also stopping to snog a bit, then they got out and dried off, choosing to only put on some boxers and get back into bed to cuddle until their kids woke up.

"Do we have any plans today?" Niall asked quietly, after Harry got comfortable in his arms.

"Rory and Anna are coming over for brunch around eleven. The kids will be with them of course. If they don't have plans I'm sure they'll stay into the afternoon." Harry told Niall.

"My babies are coming over!" Niall cheered, a huge grin lighting up his face.

"Yes our grandchildren are coming over," Harry chuckled.

"They're so cute, Harry. I want to keep them," Niall says.

"You practically do keep them. They're always here for sleepovers. Rory and Anna have so much alone time I'm surprised they don't have ten more kids!" Harry joked.

"Oh stop it. You love having them here just as much as I do. It was you who had them in the kitchen last week, teaching them how to bake," Niall scoffed.

"Penny and Maddie were so good at it. We're going to bake a cake next time!" Harry says excitedly.

Niall can't help but smile at the thought of his grandchildren baking with Harry. They're such beautiful, happy children. Niall was so proud of Rory and Anna for raising them so well. He said as much to Harry and Harry agreed with him.

"They're doing a great job. They almost didn't make it to that point though, did they? Marriage and kids."

Harry was right. They almost didn't.

When they were three years into their relationship, Anna got offered a promotion at the publishing company she worked for. The only problem was that the promotion was in New York. Someone was retiring in the New York office and Anna had worked so hard, proving herself everyday so she was the logical choice for the promotion.

It was definitely bittersweet for Anna. She deserved that promotion and she loved New York but she loved Rory too and the thought of being away from him devastated her. She was also a strong independent woman and knew in her heart she couldn't turn down this advancement in her career for a boy. No matter how much she loved him.

When Rory found out about it, he was so happy for her. His heart was breaking but he hid it the best he could because she deserved that promotion and there was no way he was going to let her pass it up. So she took the job and the two of them put on brave faces as they promised to talk all the time and see each other as much as possible. They vowed to make it work. Vowed to make time for Skype and talking on the phone and flying back and forth to see each other. Unfortunately, as good as their intentions were, it just didn't work out that way. Anna worked Monday to Friday and by the time she finished work on Friday evening and flew all the way back to England they'd only have part of Saturday and part of Sunday before she'd have to fly back again. The flight was too long to make it feasible to return home just for a weekend.

As for Rory, he couldn't travel at all. He had a match every weekend, training during the week and then there were friendlies that he played with The Republic of Ireland national team. There was just never time to fly all the way to New York.

As for Skype, that proved to be difficult as well. The time difference fucked everything up and it ended up that one of them had to be up in the middle of the night just so they could talk. One or both of them was going to work exhausted and it started to take a toll on them physically as well as taking a toll on their relationship. They started to fight and say things to each other they didn't mean. They were miserable and after six months of it they finally decided to break up. They both said if Anna got transferred back to London and they were both still single, they could talk about trying again. That was just wishful thinking, though. Deep down they didn't think that would ever happen. It could take years for a spot to open up in the London office and Rory could be playing Football in the Premier League for twenty years. It was hopeless and the situation left both of them devastated.

After the relationship ended, Rory threw himself into Football full force. All he did was train. Niall and Harry hardly saw him. If he came home at all it was late at night, then he'd be gone again early in the morning. He barely saw Finn and Nori anymore and he loved his siblings, would spend hours playing with them and making them laugh. He worked himself into the ground and it all came to a head when he collapsed and was brought to the hospital. The Doctor declared it exhaustion and dehydration and told Rory he had to take at least two weeks off work to recuperate. Rory didn't like that at all. He kicked up a fuss and Harry was livid. He went into Rory's hospital room and talked to him alone and when he came back out again, Rory had calmed down and promised to listen to everything the Doctor said.

Niall didn't find out until years later what was said. He forgot all about it because he was just so glad their son wasn't about to screw up his health anymore. When it came up years later, though, Rory told Niall it was the look on Harry's face that made him stop fighting it. He looked so scared and Rory didn't want his Pop to feel like that. They weren't related by blood but they had a strong bond and Rory would do anything for Harry. No questions asked.

After that, Rory took better care of himself and stopped working himself too hard in order to forget the pain of his breakup. Eventually he was happy again and started dating but it was mostly casual. There were a couple of girls Niall and Harry met and they suspected it could have been something serious with either of them but they probably called it off when they discovered they didn't have all of Rory's heart. Not really.

Eventually three years had passed and Niall and Harry didn't think they'd be seeing Anna ever again. It made them sad because they loved her like a daughter and she made Rory so happy. They were perfect for each other. Life didn't always work out the way you wanted it too, though and they both knew they had to let their son live his own life without interfering.

They did end up finding their way back to each other though. Niall remembered how it happened as if it just happened yesterday.

 

 

  
_It was after nine in the evening when the buzzer at their gate went off. Niall had Nori in his arms, kissing the six year old all_ _over her face, his heart nearly bursting with love at the high pitched giggles that were coming from her mouth._

_"I love you, little lovey. You go with Papa to bed okay? I'll be up soon," Niall smiled at his daughter and kissed her nose before setting her down and tapping her bum as she ran towards Harry. Niall met his husbands eyes and smiled softly at him "I'll see who's at the gate then I'll be up okay?"_

_"Okay. I'll get the kids tucked in. Come on loves," Harry said to Finn, Nori and their four year old, Kate._

_Niall watched fondly for a moment as his kids all ran after Harry, talking a mile at minute, all wanting their Papa's full attention. Once they disappeared up the stairs, Niall headed for the small room just off the foyer where their security cameras were. He couldn't get a good look at who was in the car at their gate until he pressed the intercom button and said hello. Nobody answered him but the person came into view again and once he realized it was Anna he activated the video monitor so she could see him sign._

_"Hi...um, hi Niall. It's- it's Anna. Do you- could I come in do you think?" She asked nervously, a tremor in her voice that made Niall think she was crying or had been crying._

_"Sure. Come on in, love. I'll meet you at the door," Niall signed with a frown on his face as he pressed the button to open the gate for her. He waited in the security room until he saw the gate close behind her car then he walked out and opened up the front door, watching as she climbed the steps._

_When she came into full view his heart sunk and he rushed forward, immediately placing both his hands on her shoulders and looking into her eyes, making sure he spoke slowly so she could read his lips "What happened? Are you okay?"_

_"Yeah, I'm- I'm okay. It's not as bad as it looks," She said, letting out a shaky breath._

_It certainly looked bad to Niall. She looked exhausted, like she had been crying for hours and if she had been, Niall couldn't blame her since she was currently sporting a black, swollen eye and a busted lip._

_"Come in," Niall signed, thinking it better to sign instead of making her try to read his lips with one eye swollen shut "You must be freezing. You're only wearing a light jumper. It's February!"_

_"I'm okay. Really. It's not that cold," She tried to assure Niall but when he grabbed her hand to pull her into the kitchen it felt like a block of ice._

_"You're not okay!" Niall signed emphatically "I'm making you tea and you're going to drink it and-" Niall cut off as he spotted one of Harry's jumpers draped across the back of a kitchen chair. He picked it up and thrust it at Anna "-you'll put this on before you freeze to death. You need to get warm."_

_"Thank you," She said quietly, ducking her head a bit after pulling the jumper on over her head "I-I knew I did the right thing coming here."_

_"You're always welcome here. Always." Niall signed before he pulled her into his arms and hugged her tight. She immediately tucked her face into Niall's neck and Niall tried to soothe her by rubbing slow circles across her back like he did with his children. She may be twenty-eight years old but everyone needed a bit of comfort every now and then._

_They stayed that way for quite some time. Long after the kettle had boiled and long enough for Harry to have put the kids to bed and come back down the stairs calling out to him, wondering what was taking him so long. Anna couldn't hear him of course, and her back was to the entryway to the kitchen so she didn't hear Harry walk into the kitchen and stop dead in his tracks when he saw her._

_"Is that Anna?" Harry asked, a shocked look on his face._

_Niall didn't say anything, just made eye contact with his husband, trying to convey to him without words the seriousness of the situation. Harry seemed to get it right away, not saying anything more while Niall gently pulled back from Anna so he could let her know Harry was there._

_"Hi..." She said to Harry, turning around to face him but not able to meet his eyes._

_"Oh my God!" Harry exclaimed, walking the rest of the way into the kitchen and putting a gentle hand on Anna's forearm. He immediately looked past her to Niall "What happened, Niall?"_

_"I don't know. We haven't gotten that far yet," Niall shrugged, a worried look on his face "She came here, though, so she must trust us and feel safe here. We have to help her the best we can."_

_"Of course!" Harry nodded, squeezing Anna's arm to get her attention before he started signing again "Come on, love. Let's go into the living room where's it's more comfortable. We'll light the fireplace and get it all warm. You look like you're freezing. You're shaking."_

_"That's a good idea," Niall signed "I'll make us all tea and come right in behind you."_

_Anna nodded, a small, grateful smile on her face as she looked between Harry and Niall. "Thank you. Just- thank you."_

_"Come on," Harry smiled and took her hand, leading her out of the kitchen to the living room._

_Niall turned the kettle on to boil again, getting three mugs from the cupboard and milk from the fridge. While he waited, he took his phone from his pocket and contemplated texting Rory. He thought about it for a bit, tossing his phone from one hand to the other while he tried to figure out what to do. He knew Rory had never gotten over Anna and he thought about what he'd want if the situation was reversed. If someone did this to Harry, he'd want to know, even if they were no longer together._

_So he pulled up his son's name and texted him, asking him to come over right away. Rory texted back immediately, asking what was wrong? If Harry and the kids were alright? Niall assured him they were fine, he just needed to talk to him about something important. He didn't say what. He didn't think this was something that should be discussed over the phone or in a text._

_Five minutes later, Niall entered the living room carrying a tray with three cups of tea and some cookies just in case Anna was hungry. He doubted she would eat anything but he wanted to offer it just in case._

_"If you need anything else, please let us know," Niall signed after he passed Anna and Harry their cups._

_"This is perfect. You've already done so much. I-I didn't know what to do, where to go. My parents moved to Spain a couple of years ago and I didn't really want to go there and I was- I was too embarrassed to go to any of my friends. I talk to all my London friends regularly since I moved, I know they'd be kind and want to help me but I..."_

_"You don't have to explain, sweetheart. We're truly glad you came here. You were like a daughter to us for a long time. We're happy to see you, no matter what the circumstances," Harry signed "Are you...alright? Your eye is swollen pretty bad. How about I get you some paracetamol and some ice for the swelling?"_

_"Okay. Yeah. It does kind of sting a bit," Anna said "Thank you."_

_When Harry left, Niall looked at Anna and took a deep breath before he started signing again "I don't know if I've done the right thing or if you'll be mad at me but I have to be honest...I asked Rory to come over here. I just- I know he still cares for you a lot and if it were Harry I'd want to know what happened, I-"_

_Anna reached over and put her hands on top of Niall's to stop his signing "It's okay. I'm not mad. I actually- I miss him so much. I miss him everyday and I know it might be selfish because he has a life, a career and maybe even a girlfriend and I shouldn't mess that up but I just- I want to see him. I really need to see him."_

_"He'll want to see you, too. I know he will and Anna...he doesn't have a girlfriend so..." Niall left it there, not wanting to insinuate she should try and get back together with Rory but honestly he wouldn't be upset if they did, he'd be ecstatic._

_Harry soon came back with the pills and a bag of frozen peas for Anna and she immediately held the bag up to her eye, flinching when the cold hit her. She popped the pills in her mouth and washed them down with tea then she sat back with her eyes closed while Niall filled Harry in about Rory._

_Ten minutes later, the front door opened and closed, indicating Rory had arrived "Dad? Pop? Where are you? Is everything okay?"_

_"In here," Niall called out, standing up to meet his son in the doorway. Anna must have sensed the movement because she opened her eyes and sat up, removing the peas from her eye just as Rory walked into the room._

_"Oh my God!" Rory cried out, his hands immediately coming up to sign "Anna? What happened? What the fuck happened?" He walked across the room and kneeled on the floor in front of Anna, gently cupping her cheeks with his hands and talking slowly now, so she could read his lips "Are you okay? Please tell me you're okay, baby."_

_Anna nodded frantically, her hands coming up and gripping Rory's forearms. She opened her mouth to speak but all that came out was a sob and the next thing the three of them knew, she was sobbing and throwing her arms around Rory's neck, burying her face in his neck._

_Rory pulled her tight against him and stood up, taking her with him, they clung together as she cried and when Rory turned them so he was facing Harry and Niall, there were silent tears rolling down his own cheeks "What the hell happened?"_

_"We don't know," Harry said quietly "She only got here about forty-five minutes ago. We didn't want to push her to tell us."_

_Rory smoothed a hand down over Anna's long, blonde hair and kissed her temple lovingly "She's got a busted lip and a black eye. Someone punched her in the face. There's no other explanation and when I find out who it was I'm going to make them wish they were never born."_

_"Rory..." Niall sighed._

_"Don't 'Rory' me, Dad! If Pop came home one day like this, what would you do?" Rory asked, anger flashing in his eyes._

_"You know I'd kill anyone who touched your Pop. I would, but I'd end up in prison for the rest of my life, never able to be with him or our children again so I would hope someone would calm me down enough so I could see reason. We don't know what happened yet. All we know is Anna needs us to be there for her right now. She needs you. So try to stay calm because the last thing she needs on top of everything is to see you freak out and then have to try to calm you down," Niall tells his son in a calm, soothing voice._

_Rory closed his eyes for a moment and swallowed hard before opening them again and nodding slightly at his parents "Okay."_

_"Good. Do you want us to leave you alone?" Harry asked._

_"That's up to Anna," Rory gently pulled back from Anna so she could read his lips "Can you tell me what happened? Do you want Dad and Pop to leave?"_

_"No! No, they don't have to leave," Anna said, turning around to face Harry and Niall "You don't have to leave. I came here because I knew I'd be okay here. I knew you'd both take me in with open arms. That's just who you are."_

_"We're glad you feel that way. We're glad you came here," Harry smiled reassuringly at her "Why don't we all sit down and if you want to tell us what happened, we'll listen."_

_Anna nodded and let Rory lead her over to the couch to sit down. When they sat down, he wrapped her up in his arms and pulled her to his side, kissing the top of her head and pressing his cheek to her hair for a moment before releasing her so he could sit back and be able to sign where she can see it._

_"Here, baby," Rory handed her back the bag of frozen peas "Keep that on your eye, yeah?"_

_"Thank you," Anna murmured, reaching out to squeeze one of Rory's hands._

_Rory smiled at Anna and gently brushed a thumb over the cheek that didn't have a bag of frozen peas covering it. Niall linked his fingers with Harry's and watched the exchange, biting his lip to keep from smiling too much. When he briefly looked over at his husband, Harry was already looking at him with a fond look in his eye, leaning over to whisper "That's how I look at you, ya know."_

_"I know because it's how I look at you, too." Niall whispered back, moving so he was sitting even closer to Harry, their thighs pressed completely together "He's still in love with her. I knew he was."_

_"Yeah. I kept hoping they'd find their way back to each other but four years passed and...well who knows what will happen now? Maybe fate is alive and kicking." Harry laughed softly, pressing his face into Niall's neck and kissing him there._

_Niall didn't get to respond. Rory was asking Anna what happened and he returned his attention to them to listen._

_"It was the guy I'm dating. Well, I'm not dating him anymore. Fuck that," Anna scoffed, making Rory, Harry and Niall laugh "We were only dating for six months but to be honest, he never treated me like anything less than a Queen so I never really saw it coming. I should have. Over the past three or four weeks I've noticed he has a volatile temper. Never towards me but he would yell at the Barista at Starbucks for messing up his coffee or the dry cleaner for not getting a spot out of his shirt. It shocked me but I thought maybe he was stressed because that wasn't how he acted around me._

_Anyway, I've been wanting to come home for months. I like New York but it's not home to me. I miss London. I miss all the things we all take for granted like simply walking past Big Ben or Buckingham Palace everyday and admiring how beautiful they are. I miss the food, I even miss the weather and I- I especially miss the people. My friends, my family...you."_

_Anna was looking at Rory when she said this, their eyes meeting in an intense, emotional stare. It was like they were communicating through their eyes, an electric feeling filling the room instantly._

_"I missed you, too," Rory signed without speaking "More than anything."_

_"Fuck. I'm gonna cry," Harry whispered in Niall's ear, making Niall lift a hand to cover his mouth to keep from laughing._

_Anna smiled shyly at Rory then quickly looked down at her hands like she couldn't believe what Rory was saying. "Um yeah so, I-I started looking for a job here in London. The company I work for doesn't have anything open here so I looked elsewhere and got offered a position at another company. It's even a step up from the position I have now, great pay and great benefits so I accepted. So I decided to break things off with Caleb. We hadn't been dating long and we definitely weren't in love. I didn't see any point in trying to keep something going long distance. When I told him about my new job and that I was moving back to London, this-" Anna waved a hand around in front of her face "-happened. I was in complete shock, I couldn't even react which is why he got the chance to hit me again. After that_ I _guess my survival instincts kicked in and I fought back. I kicked him as hard as I could in the balls and while he was bent over trying not to vomit I grabbed my pepper spray from my purse. As soon as he looked up I sprayed him in the eyes with it then grabbed my purse and passport and left. I went straight to the airport, booked a flight and came home. That's why I didn't have a jacket. I literally only have the clothes on my back."_

_Rory brushed his fingers over Anna's cheek and shook his head in awe "I'm so proud of you. Do you understand how much courage it took for you to fight back like that? It was so brave. So incredibly brave. I'm only sorry I missed it. My little Ninja."_

_Anna watched Rory signing with her one good eye, the smile on her face only getting bigger after every word until she burst out laughing at the Ninja comment "I don't know about that. I just hope his balls are black and blue and he can't sit for a month."_

_All three men laughed loudly at Anna's comment, Rory looking at her like she hung the moon "I'm so glad you came home."_

_"Me too. I wasn't supposed to come for another month, though. My new flat won't be ready until then and I have none of my things with me. I haven't even called my boss to tell her why I didn't show up for work today! I know I resigned but I was planning on working out a months notice. Oh my God!" Anna groaned, her hands flying around everywhere as she signed and spoke at the same time._

_"Hey," Rory grabbed her hands to calm her down, speaking slowly so she could read his lips and he wouldn't have to let go of her hands "One thing at a time, yeah? You're going to stay here tonight and get some sleep. Right Dad? Pop?"_

_"Absolutely!" Harry and Niall both signed at the same time before Harry continued "You can stay here for the whole month until your flat is ready. You know we have the room and Finn will be so excited to see you."_

_"Oh! That's so generous of you but I can't let him and your other kids see me like this. It might scare them," Anna said._  
  
"Of course it won't!" Harry signed "I'm sure they'll ask questions but we'll explain you had an accident. It's a tiny white lie because obviously it wasn't an accident but I don't mind the little white lie in this case."

_Without even realizing what he's doing, Niall starts humming one of Harry's old songs "Little White Lies" which sends Harry and Rory into fits of laughter._

_"What's happening?" Anna signed, a confused look on her face._

_Rory looked at her, red faced from laughing and signed "Dad just randomly started humming one of Pop's old songs."_

_"Oh shut up! It's not my fault," Niall huffed "Do you know how many of your Pop's concerts I've been to? I know the words to all the songs. Probably even better than Harry and they get stuck in your head! All it takes is one little phrase to make it pop into your head."_

_"Really?" Harry giggled "Or do you just listen to my albums everyday on your way to work?"_

_"Why would I do that when I can just have you sing to me when I get home?" Niall smirks._

_Harry laughed and wrapped his arms loosely around Niall's neck "Maybe because you can't live without me and the thought of being away from me for eight hours a day just kills you so you have to listen to me singing."_

_"I can live without you," Niall pokes Harry in the stomach "I'm gonna live without you tonight when I make you sleep on the couch."_

_"You wouldn't. You love me. You'd miss me and come get me after fifteen minutes," Harry teased, his smile lighting up his face and his dimples deepening in his cheeks._

_Niall doesn't say anything for a minute, just stares into Harry's eyes before leaning in and kissing him softly "I'd come get you after five minutes darlin'. Spent too many nights without you when you were on tour. I'd never do it on purpose."_

_"See? You love me!" Harry giggles then turns to Rory and Anna saying "He loves me!"_

_"Yes Pop, we know. Dad loves you and you love Dad. Can we move along now?" Rory rolled his eyes._

_"Shut up, Rory. They're so cute!" Anna cooed._

_"Yeah. We're cute," Harry stuck his tongue out at Rory, making Niall and Anna laugh at him._

_"And apparently immature," Rory snorted "Come on, Anna. We'll go upstairs and I'll make sure you have whatever you need for tonight."_

_"Let us know if you need anything. Anything at all," Niall said, reaching out to brush a hand over her arm "Sleep well, yeah?"_

_"Thank you. So much." Anna said, stepping forward and hugging both Harry and Niall before Rory leads her upstairs._

_"She'll be okay right?" Harry says to Niall after they disappeared upstairs._

_"She will. She's one of the strongest people I know and she's got our son on her side. She's going to be just fine."_

  
"Niall?" Niall is jolted from his thoughts by Harry's voice "What are you thinking about?"

Niall shifted around on the bed so that Harry was laying on his back and Niall could lay on his side next to him, cuddling in and looking down into his eyes. He lifted a hand and tucked a lock of hair behind Harry's ear "I was just remembering how Rory and Anna got back together."

"Yeah," Harry murmured softly, his fingers coming up to brush over the stubble on Niall's jaw "They went through a lot. Four years apart and they still found their way back to each other. I was so proud of how mature they were through it all."

"And now we have our three precious grandchildren," Niall couldn't help but smile wide down at Harry.

Rory and Anna started a family right away after their wedding. They had planned on waiting a year but birth control failed them on their honeymoon and Anna got pregnant right away. They were both ecstatic about it, though, since they both loved kids and were going to start a family someday anyway.

Now, they had three beautiful children. Penelope was 6, Madeline was 4 and Daniel was 2. Niall loved all of them fiercely but he had a special bond with Penny. When she was born and Niall saw her for the first time, got to hold her for the first time, he broke down sobbing and Harry had to eventually take the baby from him and pass her to Rory so he could wrap Niall in his arms and try to calm him down.

He remembers the worried looks on Harry, Rory and Anna's faces as he struggled, afraid something was seriously wrong with Niall. When he finally calmed down he explained he was just a bit overwhelmed because Penny looked like Rory when he was a baby and Niall didn't get to see that in person. Only in pictures. He never got to hold his son and rock him to sleep, hear his first words and see his first steps. He could do that with Penny though. She was a part of his first born son and he planned to do for her what he couldn't do for Rory.

By the time Niall was finished explaining, all three of them were crying right along with Niall and after handing Penny to Anna, Rory hugged Niall tight and didn't let go for a very long time.

"Penny and Maddie are going to be firecrackers when they grow up. I feel bad for any boys who will fall for them when they're older. They're already a lot to handle now!" Harry laughed "Such cheek! Just like their Daddy and Grampy."

"Oh my God!" Niall gushed as he let his body fall on top of Harry's "I love that. Grampy. Penny called me that and now Maddie and Danny do, too. They're so cute, Harry. So fucking cute!"

"Alright, alright Grampy! You're in love with our grandchildren. I get it." Harry laughed then pressed loud kisses against Niall's cheek "I think we better get up now. The twins will be awake soon and if they get to the kitchen before us there will be egg and flour all over the damn place again. That took too long to clean up."

"Yeah because we tried to discipline them by making them clean it up and they only made it worse!" Niall cackled.

"Menaces! Or - one menace really. Matty just does whatever Charlie does. He's the ringleader," Harry sighed.

"They're brilliant though aren't they? Sometimes I can't believe how lucky we were to get them. It tears me up when I think about someone else getting them and not loving them as much as they deserve. Those boys are so special, Harry. So amazing. The world needs to know that." Niall says softly.

"The world will definitely know our babies. They'll make sure of that," Harry laughed "Come on now. Up, up, up."

"I'm up, I'm up," Niall slid out of bed and lifted his arms over his head to stretch, yelping when Harry smacked him in the arse.

"Your arse is mine tonight after the kids are asleep." Harry grinned "Still so perfect, even at fifty years old."

Niall dipped his head and blushed as he grabbed a pair of jeans to pull on over his legs "Been a long time since you topped. I'll be looking forward to it all day."

"Yeah?" Harry finished putting a shirt on then he engulfed Niall in his arms, swaying them from side to side "I love you. I adore you, baby. I'll make sure to show you tonight."

Niall tipped his head up for a kiss, only to be interrupted by a loud shriek downstairs "Oh God," Niall groaned and tipped his head back toward the ceiling "I'm too old for this."

"You're fifty, Ni," Harry snorted out a laugh "That's not old."

"Yes it is. It's too old to deal with whatever fresh hell is happening downstairs," Niall whined as he pulled a shirt on over his head.

"Well my darling love. That shriek could only be caused by one person. Our charming daughter Kate and I do believe it's your DNA running through her veins, not mine." Harry teased.

Kate was their thirteen year old daughter, born when Finn was four and Nori was two. Harry really wanted another biological child from Niall and Niall could never say no to his husband. Of course Kate was every bit a Horan, wreaking havoc everywhere she went. She was loud and loved to laugh like all the Horan's and she also liked to torment her older sister and brother if she could.

Niall followed Harry out of their bedroom and all the way down to the first floor where the noise was coming from. As soon as they walked into the living room, Nori was all over them.

"Dad! Pop! She took my phone! Give me back my phone you little brat!" Nori shouted angrily.

"Don't call your sister a brat, Nori." Harry warned in a stern voice.

"But Pop she took my phone! Give me my phone!" Nori growled at Kate.

"Now why would I do that when I can read your interesting conversations with your boyfriend?" Kate smirked, waving the phone around in front of her.

"He's not my boyfriend!" Nori screamed.

"Enough!" Niall yelled over the two girls "Give your sister her phone, Kate."

"But Dad-"

"Katherine Elizabeth Horan. I said give the phone back and you best do what I tell you or not only will you not have your sisters phone but you won't have your own either." Niall warned.

"Fine!" Kate spat, tossing the phone at Nori "Nobody ever lets me have any fun here. If grandpa were here he'd help me."

"Your grandfather does a lot of things he shouldn't." Niall said "Nobody is saying you can't have fun. Have all the fun you want but invading someone's privacy is not the kind of fun we have in this house."

Kate folded her arms over her chest and glared at all three of them. Harry started laughing next to him and Niall turned to him in shock "What are you laughing at? This isn't funny, Harry."

"Sorry. Sorry, it's just- when she scowls like that she looks exactly like you. She's like a female version of you," Harry said, trying to stifle his giggles behind his hand.

Niall sighed and shook his head "Apparently I must parent by myself this morning."

"Oh don't be so dramatic," Harry rolled his eyes "I think Kate understands that if we find Nori's phone in her hands again without Nori's consent, she'll have all her electronics locked away for a week. Right Kate?"

"Yes," Kate muttered grumpily.

"Good," Harry clapped his hands in front of him "Now let's get some breakfast. What do you girls want? We're having brunch later and I'll be making eggs, pancakes, waffles and a bunch of other stuff so maybe have something light? Cereal or some fruit maybe?"

"I'll have some oatmeal but I can make it myself, Pop." Nori said "I'm just making the instant kind anyway."

"That sounds good little lovey," Niall wrapped an arm around his daughter and kissed her forehead "I think I'll have some too."

Nori offers to make Niall's as well so Niall took a seat at the table with Kate while Harry starts cutting up some fresh fruit for himself and Kate. The thirteen year old was still scowling so Niall slid his chair closer and slid an arm over her shoulders "Cheer up, sunshine. I miss that beautiful smile of yours."

Kate sighed and rolled her eyes but when Niall leaned in and placed a big, sloppy kiss on her cheek, the young girl couldn't help but giggle. Niall laughed with her and pulled her into his side, resting his chin on her head.

Some new voices started to filter in then, and soon the twins were running into the kitchen with seventeen year old Finn behind them.

"Daddy! Papa!" Charlie yelled as he ran toward Niall at the table, his socks making him slide across the floor. Niall steadied him and kept him from toppling over when he slid to a stop by his chair "Finny said-" Charlie stopped to catch his breath "Finny said we could go play footie with him and Rory after lunch. He said we could, Daddy. He said. Can we go? Please can we go?"

Niall and Harry both laughed at their sons enthusiasm, Harry picking Matty up in his arms and cuddling him while Charlie continued to bounce around.

"I think that's okay with me if it's okay with Papa," Niall smiled at his two boys.

"It's definitely okay with me," Harry said, kissing all over Matty's face and making him squeal. It warmed Niall's heart to see that because Matty is the quiet one of the twins and very much Charlie's follower. The only reason he ever gets in trouble is because he does whatever Charlie does. Like wrecking the kitchen that time.

"Yeeeessss!" Charlie screamed, pumping his fist in the air "We're gonna be proper footie players when we grow up, Matty! It's a done deal. Rory and Finny are the best players and they're teaching us."

"How does he have so much energy when he wakes up? It's like he's hooked up to a sugar IV in his sleep," Finn groaned as he took a seat at the table, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"Hey big brother. I've got a bone to pick with you," Nori turned to look at her brother.

Finn removed his fingers from his eyes and looked at his sister with a scrunched up confused face "What did I do? I'm pretty sure I haven't done anything."

"You have," Nori scoffed "All the new friends I made when I started at your school this year are hot for you."

Niall and Harry's eyes both widened and Kate choked on her glass of milk. Finn's face remained the same, though, full of complete confusion like he still hadn't fully woken up and couldn't understand what he was hearing.

"What? I've known all your friends since you were a kid. They're not hot for me." Finn mumbled.

"I'm not talking about them. I said my new friends. It's gross. You're not hot. You're my brother." Nori screwed up her face.

"Nori," Harry laughed, his eyes full of glee "Just because you can't comprehend why someone would like your brother doesn't mean he isn't hot."

"Nobody likes me!" Finn finally woke up from his stupor "That's ridiculous!"

"It doesn't surprise me that you haven't noticed. Your nose is always stuck in a book. Everyone could walk down the halls fully naked and you wouldn't even notice," Nori said, her voice laced with exasperation.

"I certainly hope that isn't happening!" Niall folded his arms across his chest and looked at his children with narrowed eyes.

"Of course it isn't," Nori rolled her eyes "I was making a point. Finn is half nerd, half jock. It drives women wild. I don't need to see my friends lusting after my own brother."

"Well excuse me. I can't exactly change what I look like." Finn scoffed.

"He's like Clark Kent!" Kate spoke up "He wears his nerdy glasses by day then by night he's the sexy footie star. Get in Finny!!!"

"Oh my God!" Niall slapped a hand over his daughters mouth "No! Nobody is getting in anybody."

Finn stared at Niall for a long minute, blinking his eyes slowly "Is that like, a solid rule or something because I've already-"

"No!! Stop talking, stop! There are children in the room." Niall jumped up, fluttering around the room like an upset chicken running around its coop flapping its wings.

Nori and Kate were staring at their brother with wide eyes while Harry sat there cackling. The twins thankfully weren't paying attention, too busy with their own conversation about footie.

"Nori, Kate, stay with your brothers. You-" Niall pointed at Finn "Come with your Pop and I please."

Finn and Harry both got up and followed Niall out of the room and down the hall into Niall's office, closing the door behind them.

"Care to finish that sentence I interrupted?" Niall leaned back against his desk with his arms folded across his chest.

"What your dad means-" Harry sat next to his son on the leather couch, resting a gentle hand on his thigh while also glaring at Niall "-is if you're having sex, why didn't you tell us?"

"Um...that's kind of private isn't it?" Finn looked between his parents a bit uneasily.

"We're not looking to hear all the details," Niall rolled his eyes "It's just- having sex is a big deal. We would have liked to know so we could make sure you were okay emotionally and that you were safe."

"Dad," Finn sighed "You and Pop have been talking to me and Nori since we were twelve about safe sex and treating our partners with respect whether it's someone we're in love with or not. We may have complained at the time but we did listen. I was careful. Everything is fine. I'm not traumatized or anything."

"So...the girl you were with was good to you as well? And you used a condom?" Harry asked, gently.

"We used a condom but I- I didn't say it was a girl." Finn said quietly, not meeting his parents eyes.

The room fell completely quiet. So quiet you could hear a pin drop. Harry and Niall stared at each other with wide eyes, not able to believe what they just heard. Their son had sex with a guy? He was gay and didn't even tell them? His parents who were gay themselves and have been together for over twenty years. His parents who would be the last people to treat him any differently for being gay.

"Finn," Niall spoke softly, the hurt in his eyes very evident to Harry "Why- why wouldn't you tell us you're gay? Do you not trust us?"

"What?!" Finn looked horrified "Of course I do!"

"Then why is it such a big secret?" Niall asked.

"It's not. I planned on telling you once I figured everything out. I kind of figured out maybe a year ago that I like people who are intelligent, who I can have a stimulating conversation with, someone who is funny and makes me laugh but doesn't mind that I'm quiet and like to keep to myself sometimes. It doesn't matter to me which body parts they have." Finn said.

"Okay so you're not gay, you like people. You still could have told us," Niall said, the hurt still evident in his voice.

"Pop!" Finn turned to Harry, pleading "I-I didn't mean to hurt you guys. Make Dad see that I wasn't trying to hurt you."

"Hey, hey. It's okay," Harry wrapped his arms around their son and held him close "Of course we know that, Finn. You're our beautiful, sweet boy. You've got a huge heart just like your Dad and Rory. You'd never hurt someone on person."

Niall sighed and swiped a hand over his face, taking a deep breath before walking over and kneeling in front of his son and husband "It's okay, Bub. I didn't mean to upset you. I'm not mad at you. I'm just in shock and trying to understand what's going on. Your Pop and I are gay. I just figured it would be easy to tell us you like boys as well."

"It's not about that though. You and Pop raised us all to treat everybody as equals. Gay or straight didn't matter so when I realized I don't care about what body parts a person has, it didn't occur to me that it was something I needed to announce. I mean, Nori likes boys and she doesn't have to announce that. I just didn't think it was a big deal. It's not like I was never going to tell you, I just didn't think there was some big rush. I really wanted to figure things out on my own before I spoke to you."

"Okay," Niall said slowly, trying to understand. Trying to swallow down his hurt so that his son wasn't upset.

"I just- you know me. I'm quiet and private. I don't talk about my feelings much because it's hard for me. I feel all awkward and- and I just don't like sharing my deepest thoughts with people. It's not easy for me and it's even worse because you're my parents and teenagers never want to talk about sex and relationships with their parents." Finn said shyly, his cheeks turning a bit red.

"That's not true," Niall frowned.

"Really Niall? Did you talk about your sex life with Bobby then?" Harry raised an eyebrow at his husband.

Niall screwed up his face in disgust "Touché."

"Okay so, who is this boy? What made you want to have sex with him? Are you a couple? Is he your first?" Harry started firing off questions.

"Harry, he just finished explaining how he finds it hard to talk about this stuff," Niall settled a hand on his husbands leg, squeezing gently "Let's just slow things down a bit and ask one question at a time. Tell us what you're comfortable with, Bub. Just know you can trust us and we won't judge you for anything. Honestly you should have heard some of the conversations we had with your brother when he was around your age. Rory doesn't have a filter, he told us everything. It was definitely interesting."

"I know." Finn snorted "He's still like that. Sometimes I want to shove a sock in his mouth and tell him to shut up. TMI and all that."

"That sounds like Rory," Niall laughed, standing up from the floor and sitting down on the couch on the other side of Finn. "So, is there anything you feel okay telling us? Is he your boyfriend?"

"No, no, nothing like that," Finn waved his hand around in the air in front of him "We're friends and he's really great and really fit so I figured why not? You always told me my first time should be with someone I trust and I trust him. He's done it before so he knew what he was doing. Made me less nervous."

"Have we met him before? Is it one of your friends from school?" Harry asked.

"No. We met at the academy. He's on Chelsea's U/18 squad, same as me," Finn answered "We just- we have a lot in common. He's different than other people my age. He likes school and he loves talking about things other teenagers don't talk about. We talk about everything. It's intelligent conversation. I like that. I don't want to waste my time sitting around with the lads talking about what girl in school has the bigger tits. That's so stupid."

"Well I agree with that," Harry scoffed "Boys shouldn't be sitting around demeaning girls that way. If I ever hear you or your brothers doing it I'll smack all of you."

"Like I said Pop, that stuff doesn't interest me. We talk about books a lot. He thinks it's cool me, you and Rory all read the same book so we can discuss it afterwards. His Dad is a bit of an asshole. They don't have a good relationship like I do with the both of you."

"So you're just friends? You don't want anything more?" Harry asked.

"I... I don't know? I really like him but it's complicated and I don't know, should I really be in a serious relationship at 17?"

"I certainly think you're mature enough for it," Harry said "We told your brother this years ago and I'm going to say the same thing to you now- don't think you can't date and have relationships because you're young or too focused on becoming a footie player. If the right person comes along, you should go for it because it may never happen again and you could live the rest of your life regretting it."

Finn was quiet for a bit, turning his Pop's words around in his head "I don't know what to do. He really is great. Really sweet and funny and it's nice we can do the friends with benefits thing but I think I really do like him. It's so complicated though. We play for the same team, we'll probably both be called up soon and you know what it's like in the football world. It may be 2041 and some players may have come out but there are still a lot of homophobes in the sport. We probably couldn't even hold hands without causing an uproar."

"Oh Finn," Harry hugs his son tight, his eyes meeting Niall's over their sons head "You need to do what's best for you and what makes you happy. Don't ever let anyone decide that for you. I'm not saying you have to marry the kid or anything. I'm just saying if you want to go on dates with him don't let stupid homophobic people stop you."

"I'll think about it. It might not even matter if he doesn't like me like that."

"Of course he does! Everyone is hot for you remember?" Niall smirked, teasing his son for what Nori had told them in the kitchen.

"I think she's exaggerating," Finn rolled his eyes.

"No?!?" Niall pretended to be shocked "Your sister exaggerating? Never!"

"Shut up, you," Harry playfully smacked Niall across the arm "Let's get back to the kitchen before our sons start wreaking havoc on their sisters."

All three men stood up and headed for the door, Finn shaking his head fondly "Charlie and Matty are something else. I'm really glad you adopted them."

Niall was glad too. After Kate, they hadn't really planned on having more kids. With three small kids and Rory getting married and starting his own family, their lives were extremely busy. Harry was still making music and touring a bit and Niall was busy at work. In between all that they had to make time for themselves, making sure their relationship didn't suffer. It was hectic but they had a system and it worked.

Then as Finn, Nori and Kate got older, they didn't even have time to consider more kids before Rory and Anna had Penny and their lives were once again busy with a little baby to shower with love.

Then one day out of the blue they got a call from the adoption agency they had used before they decided to adopt Finn from Niall's cousin. They never ended up using the agency because after Finn they used surrogates and they completely forgot that their information was still with the agency.

Niall was with Harry when he got the call and put the phone on speaker at the request of Stella, the woman they had spoken to many times before when they first decided to adopt.

" _I'm so sorry for calling you up like this, out of nowhere. I know you aren't looking to adopt but I just had to call. I had to try," Stella said over the phone sounding almost breathless "We have an emergency situation. A teenage girl gave birth to twins five days ago. A lovely couple from Manchester were set to adopt them. Everything was all set, they were even there for the birth. Then later that day, on their way home from the hospital there was a car accident and-and the young woman didn't make it. Her husband is devastated and as you can imagine he is in no state to adopt two children right now. He backed out on the adoption. They hadn't signed the papers yet so now- now those poor babies have nobody. The birth mother wants nothing to do with them and the only family she has is her drug addicted mother."_

_"That's- my heart is breaking for that poor man losing his wife like that and those poor babies who have nobody," Harry said, struggling to hold back tears "But I'm not understanding what it is you want from us?"_

_"Well, I was hoping you'd consider being foster parents? Just this one time! I can get the paperwork fast tracked. We already did home visits and background checks when you were considering adoption. I just- it's going to take a bit of time to find a couple willing to adopt twins and until we do, those babies will be stuck in an orphanage and Niall, Harry, I know I don't have to tell you they won't get the attention they need and deserve there. There are just so many kids and funding is always cut so the staff to child ratio is abysmal. They'll be warm and they'll have food and everything like that but the people who work there won't have much time to do the things I know you'll do. Like rock them to sleep and sing to them, play with them. I was so impressed with you both from the first moment I met you and I just know you can give these babies a loving home until we find them a family."_

_Niall and Harry were stunned. Completely shocked and unable to say anything for a minute. Thankfully Tessa must have understood they were in shock because she remained quiet on the other end of the phone and waited patiently for them to speak._

_"Could we-" Niall stops to clear his throat "Could we take some time to think about it? I think Harry and I need to discuss this a bit."_

_"Of course. You have my number. Just give me a call when you've reached a decision and thank you both so much for even considering this."_

" _We'll get back to you in a few days. We won't take long. We know you'll need an answer as soon as possible," Niall said before he hung up the phone._

_They didn't really have time to discuss it right then. They had kids to take care of and errands to run but that night when they went to bed, Harry didn't waste any time bringing it up. He wanted to do it of course. He loves babies and he wanted to help these two boys._

_Niall was a bit more reserved. He was thinking about how it would disrupt their children's lives to suddenly have two more babies in the house. He was thinking about how he would prevent himself and Harry from falling in love with those babies and being devastated when they had to give them up._

_Harry wouldn't give up, though. He convinced Niall to talk to their kids with him and feel out how they would feel to have two new babies around. They were eight, ten and twelve at this point and all three kids said they'd love it and would be excited for some babies to come stay with them for awhile._

_After that, Niall gave in pretty quickly. He knew it wasn't a good idea. He knew his heart would break when he got attached to those babies and then had to give them up. He knew Harry would be even worse but he ignored it all because he couldn't say no to Harry and his heart really did go out to those two inno_ cent _little boys._

_So they called Tessa and told her they'd do it. She was ecstatic and immediately got the ball rolling. She explained about money and the budget they had for buying things for the babies but Harry and Niall waved her off, telling her they didn't need that allowance and it should be kept for a foster family that really needed it. Good thing, too, because Harry went online and started buying two of everything and by the time he was done he had spent about fifteen thousand pounds. There's no way the allowance from the agency would have been sufficient enough for his husband. When it came to children and buying things for babies he couldn't be stopped._

_The babies arrived a week later and Niall ended up falling in love with them immediately. Tessa told them the adoptive parents spent the day with them at the hospital and named them Charles and Matthew, though it wasn't set in stone since the birth certificates hadn't been done yet. Niall and Harry decided to call them that. They didn't feel it was their place to change the names even if they wanted to since the babies would be leaving eventually and the new adoptive parents might want to change the names themselves._

_It didn't take long for the babies to fit in and soon they were Charlie and Matty and Harry spent all day cuddling them and playing with them when their kids were at school and Niall was at work. They were thriving in Harry and Niall's care and Niall was kind of surprised his husband hadn't broken down yet and begged to keep them._

_In the end it was Niall who broke down. They had the twins for six weeks and they were eight weeks old when Matty had a rough night. It was a Friday and Niall didn't have work the next day so he stayed up with him, comforting him and singing to him, rubbing his back and telling him everything was going to be okay. He had an ear infection and Niall knew it must be painful for him so he was doing everything he could to help him._

_Then, around three in the morning, when he was all cried out, he hid his face against Niall's neck and whimpered, one of his tiny hands fisting Niall's shirt. He felt safe with Niall. He was comfortable with him and trusted him to make him better._

_That's when Niall knew those babies weren't going anywhere. He was going to tell Tessa they wanted to adopt them and they'd fight tooth and nail to get them. He wasn't even going to ask Harry if that's what he wanted. He was going to keep those babies whether his husband liked it or not._

_"Harry!" Niall charged into their bedroom at four in the morning after Matty had finally fallen asleep "Wake up!"_

_Harry popped up out of the bed like he had been shocked, his hair sticking up everywhere and his eyes wild "What?!? What's wrong? Where are the kids? Is it the kids? Is Matty okay? Did his ear get worse?"_

_"Harry!" Niall yelled over his husband "Everyone is fine. Matty just fell asleep finally."_

_"Oh," A frown took over Harry's face and he absentmindedly lifted a hand to scratch his head "Why are you waking me up then? You nearly gave me a heart attack."_

_"Sorry," Niall looked at his husband sheepishly before standing up straight and putting a serious look on his face again "I just wanted to tell you right away that we're keeping Charlie and Matty. I'm calling Tessa and telling her we want to adopt them. I won't take no for an answer. They're my sons and anyone who tries to take them from me will die. By my hand. I will kill them."_

_Harry stares at Niall for so long, his face expressionless , that Niall begins to wonder if he fell asleep with his eyes open. Then, when he finally speaks, all he says is "okay"_

_"Okay?!?!" Niall looks at his husband incredulously "That's it? That's all you have to say?"_

_"Yes?" Harry gives Niall a weird look "Did you want me to say no?"_

_"No!! Of course not! I just-I guess I thought you'd have more to say." Niall sinks down onto the bed feeling a bit confused._

_"Baby," Harry sits up on his knees on the bed right behind Niall and slips his arms around Niall's neck. He rests his chin on Niall's shoulder and kisses his neck tenderly before speaking again "I know you better than I know myself. I knew this would happen. I knew you'd fall in love with them and want to be their daddy. That's why I told Tessa we'd be adopting them so she should get the paperwork started for when you came to that conclusion."_

_"Oh my God," Niall hides his face in his hands "Are you serious?"_

_"I am," Harry hugged Niall tight and giggled into his ear "You were all worried about me. Trying to be strong for the both of us but you're a big softie. Especially for our children. I knew you'd fall in love with them. They're so special. They deserve the world and we can give them that."_

_"Yeah. We definitely can," Niall turns his head so he could kiss the side of Harry's mouth "I love you."_

_"I love you too, darlin'" Niall smiled "Let's call tomorrow and see how the paperwork is going, okay?"_

_"Absolutely. Now come to bed. I want to cuddle you."_

 

  
Niall was snapped back to the present when he, Harry and Finn got back to the kitchen. The girls and the twins had all just finished their breakfasts and when the twins saw them come back into the kitchen, they both came running at Niall and Harry with huge smiles on their faces.

"Daddy!" Charlie wraps his arms around Niall's waist and looks up at him with bright blue eyes "Can we wear the new stuff you got us for footie? So we can look like Rory and Finn?"

"Of course you can," Niall smiled down at his son and ran his fingers through his blonde hair "Your shorts and jerseys are in your closets, your socks are in your sock drawer, and your cleats are in the coat closet."

"Okay!" Charlie let go of Niall and grabbed Matty's hand "Let's go Matty! We can get dressed now!"

"You're not going for hours yet," Harry says amusedly.

"I don't care!" Charlie says right before he and Matty disappear around the corner toward the stairs.

"Oh my God," Nori snorts "Could they be any cuter?"

"They're pretty cute," Niall chuckled and took his seat next to Kate at the table "Thanks for including them, Finn. I'm pretty sure you made their week."

"It's okay. I love having them around. So does Rory. Charlie is so loud and funny but Matty is sarcastic and quiet. They make me laugh." Finn shrugged.

"I'm pretty sure Charlie at least plans on taking the premier league by storm someday, same as his two older brothers." Harry smiles fondly.

"I think you're right, darlin'" Niall said "I think you're absolutely right."

  
~~~

  
Rory and the kids arrive for brunch at noon...without Anna.

"Where's Anna?" Niall asks as he lifts Penny up into the air and swings her around, smothering her face with kisses. The sound of her giggles and the giggles of Maddie and Danny who are being accosted by Harry, warm Niall's heart until he's sure it's going to burst out of his chest.

"Not here," Is all Rory says as he drops his keys on the counter.

Niall raises an eyebrow and makes eye contact with Harry who subtlety shrugs, silently telling Niall he has no idea what's going on either.

"Charlie and Matty are outside already with Finn if you want to head outside Danny?" Niall says to his grandson "And girls, Nori and Kate are upstairs if you want to go see what they're doing? Maybe they'll let you play dress up again."

All three kids cheer loudly and Niall heads for the door to yell out to Finn that Danny was coming out, so to keep an eye on the two year old. The girls are already half way up the stairs to find Nori and Kate by the time Niall turns back around, leaving Harry and Niall alone with their son in less than twenty seconds.

"Everything alright?" Harry walks over and slides an arm around Rory's shoulders. Niall, not wanting to be left out, steps forward and wraps his arms around both of them, pulling them into a hug.

"Oh my God. I'm being double teamed!" Rory jokingly complains but his arms tighten around his parents and Niall knows he appreciates the comfort.

"Is there anything we can do? The kids can stay here tonight if you want? They all have clothes here anyway." Niall offers.

"Maybe. We'll see what happens. Me and Anna are having a bit of an argument right now and she thinks it's better if she calms down instead of coming here angry," Rory sighs.

"You'll work it out. This isn't the first fight you've had and it won't be the last " Harry says with a reassuring smile.

"I know," Rory takes a seat at the table and rests his chin in his hand "This one feels different. I don't know. Did you ever have a fight where you thought maybe you'd gone too far? Fucked up too much this time?"

"Are you kidding?" Niall snorts "Don't you remember when you were sixteen and I was obsessed with you having sex and ruining your life? You and Harry were joking around and I lost my shit and yelled at both of you before leaving the house for hours."

"I do remember that," Rory smirked.

"Well what you didn't know was that when I came home that night, I went to get ready for bed and Harry kicked me out of our bedroom. He yelled at me to get out, said he didn't want to look at me. I tried to calm him down which only made it worse. I'd never seen him so angry before. I ended up in the bedroom across from yours for the night but I didn't sleep a wink. I was angry at myself for upsetting you the way I did and I honestly wasn't sure if I'd gone too far or not. Harry had never kicked me out before. We talked the next day and worked it out but your Pop warned me if I ever hurt you again there'd be hell to pay. He was quite scary. Like a lion protecting its young."

"Pop?" Rory snorted "No way!"

"Seriously Rory. He told me that you're his son and he wouldn't stand by and let me hurt you again. He would go to battle with anybody for you, even if it's me." Niall said, looking fondly at his husband as he remembered that day.

"I didn't know any of that," Rory says quietly, his eyes filling up "Ya know, after all these years it still really gets to me how much you love me Pop. I just-"

Harry scoots his chair closer to Rory so he can wrap an arm around his shoulders and pull him into his side "I love you more than anything, would do anything for you always. You're my first child and you're a part of Niall. Your Dad is the love of my life. There' wasn't even a one percent chance I wouldn't love you more than anything."

"I love you, too," Rory rested his head on Harry's shoulder. "For the past nineteen years there hasn't been one day I haven't stopped to thank Mam for having the courage to fix her mistake and get in touch with Dad. The minute she did that, I got two of the best dads in the world. Mam may have died but I'm still the luckiest person alive. I tell my own kids how lucky they are everyday to have you both as grandparents. I just-I love our family ya know? We have the best family."

"We definitely have the best family," Niall agrees with a grin.

Hours later, long after they've eaten and long after Finn and Rory have come back from playing footie with the twins, Harry and Niall stand in the kitchen with their arms wrapped around each other, looking out through the patio doors at their family in the backyard. Anna had shown up while Rory was gone to play footie and the minute he got back, her and Rory talked briefly, barely saying anything before they were hugging and kissing each other. All seemed to be alright with the O'Brien's again.

"Our whole family is right here," Niall says quietly, his hands linked with Harry's in front of his body "Six children, three grandchildren and one amazing daughter in law."

Harry hums quietly, kissing the back of Niall's neck before completely out of nowhere saying "I want to have another baby."

"What?!?!" Niall splutters and turns around quickly in Harry's arms "I thought we- I thought- Harry I'm fifty years old."

"I know how old you are," Harry chuckles "I know how old I am. We're not too old for this. We're still in the prime of our lives, we're both in excellent health, we have more money than we know what to do with and Finn will be out in the world soon, Nori not far behind. They're all growing up so fast. I don't want it to end. We still have so much love in us, baby. So much."

Niall is quiet for a long time, staring up into Harry's eyes while his brain works a mile a minute, going through everything Harry just said and thinking back on the years and years of memories they have with their children and grandchildren. "Okay," He finally says, nodding once "On one condition."

"Anything!" Harry says breathlessly, his eyes shining.

"Only one of our children has your genes. I want another one."

"I think we can arrange that," Harry shares a dimpled smile with Niall "Provided you give me a hand...literally."

"Oh my God," Niall groaned "You didn't just-"

"I did," Harry said, nodding his head slowly.

"How have a survived this for over twenty years?" Niall shakes his head in disbelief.

Harry shrugged "You love me."

Niall chuckled softly and tilted his head up to kiss Harry long and slow. When he pulls back, he looks up at Harry fondly, his thumb brushing gently over Harry's cheek "Yeah. I really do."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!
> 
> Comments and kudos are very welcome.


	5. Question?

Hi Everybody!

This isn't a chapter, obviously, because the Broken Series is finished. I just wanted to ask if there's interest in a spin off about Finn or Rory? Narry would be in it of course, supporting their kids but they wouldn't be the main focus. A lot of people have told me they're sad to see the series end. Should I write something? Or has it gone on long enough.

Please let me know in the comments? And thank you all again for your support. It means a lot to me. More than you know :)

 

 

 

** UPDATE **

 

Soooooo there seems to be a lot of interest in a story about Finn. Niall and Harry we'll be in it and I'm sure there will be parts from their POV like in Broken. It just won't be all their POV. It will center around Finn and explore his relationship with his parents, Rory, his other siblings and of course LOVE INTERESTS! I'm quite excited to be honest lol 

 

Thank you everyone! For your interest and your comments. I love all of you!

 

 

** UPDATE-SEPT.27,2016 **

 

 ****So I'm not sure how many of you have this bookmarked or the "Broken" series bookmarked but I want to let you know Finn's story is coming along nicely. I'm making sure I have a few chapters written before I post so that you guys won't have to wait anymore than a few days for an update. I hate waiting months for a chapter so I won't do that to you. I should be starting to post soon. I hope you stick around to check it out. Again, I love all of you and thanks for reading :)

 

 

** UPDATE - OCT.5,2016 **

 

Ijust posted the first chapter of my new fic about Narry's son, Finn :)

 


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